STRENGTHENING COMMUNITY
Improving connectivity to community; contributing to better health and wellbeing; strengthening Taungurung community.
MANAGING COUNTRY
Managing and healing country through traditional and modern techniques; building our land base.
PROTECTING CULTURE
Reviving language; restoring cultural knowledge; protecting and preserving our cultural heritage.
BUILDING ECONOMIC INDEPENDENCE
Ensuring financial sustainability; strengthening organisational capacity; building corporate partnerships.
The Taungurung Land and Waters Council (TLaWC) exists to raise awareness of and respect for Taungurung people and culture in the wider community.
- We provide a range of member benefits, including employment on Country, cultural transmission and general wellbeing.
- By building a strong investment foundation, we ensure economic strength and security for the Taungurung people.
- We work to heal cultural knowledge and facilitate its transmission to the next generation, including reviving language through collaborative community commitment.
- We’re the primary keeper of shared Taungurung property – land, language, intellectual property, assets and historical research.
- We liaise with government agencies, local government, developers, and other stakeholders to ensure best practice in land and water management.
- Bringing Taungurung people back to their Country through increased opportunity, shared identity and connection to culture, is a priority.
Services offered by the Taungurung Land and Waters council
- Cultural experiences – half-day scheduled tours on Taungurung Country. Strengthening the knowledge of the Taungurung Nation, passionate Taungurung guides connect people to the heart of the Taungurung story spanning thousands of years; and create an understanding about what being a custodian of Country means for Taungurung people today.
- Language translation – the Taungurung Language Reference Group is dedicated to the revival and preservation of the Taungurung language through community engagement, research, and language studies; we provide translation and Taungurung naming services.
- Welcome to Country and smoking ceremonies – grounded in Traditional Law, we provide opportunity for non-Indigenous people to recognise and pay respect to Aboriginal culture and history.
- Natural Resource Management – our NRM team is dedicated to the protection and improvement of Country, including bush regeneration, pest management, weed control, revegetation and site assessment.
- Goranwarrabul House – a place for Taungurung people. We provide culturally appropriate information and resources, health and wellbeing workshops, training, information sessions and groups to educate and improve health issues, barriers and outcomes.
- Bringing the Mob home – assistance for members to relocate back to Taungurung Country.
MORE INFORMATION
Taungurung Business Directory – Taungurung Land & Waters Council – directory of business and services operated by Taungurung people.
Bijil Ba Wudhi Deberra (Bijil and Moths) – authored by Taungurung Elder, Aunty Loraine Padgham, this is the first book written for children in both Taungurung and English languages. It tells the story of a young Taungurung boy who accompanies his parents on their annual trip to the high plains in summer to participate in cultural activities, renew friendships with other tribes and clans, and harvest Bogong moths. The book includes a QR code that can be scanned to listen to the story read in Taungurung language.
TLaWC develops educational resources for use in schools, libraries, and community groups to promote and raise cultural awareness in our communities.
We keep our members informed and connected. Through our online social media presence and dissemination of monthly newsletters we enable TLaWC members, and the wider community, to be aware of the latest news, cultural events, health services, job and educational opportunities, as well as other potential pathways for social and economic well-being.
We can assist business and industry with requirements on significant Taungurung sites, natural resource management, land use requirements, language names and translations, Welcome to Country, and more. To arrange a meeting please use the online contact form.
Tourism – A significant tourism program is being developed by the Land and Waters Council to introduce the community to the land and history of Taungurang, connecting emotionally to our stories and to Country. Tourism is our opportunity to create a welcoming space for both our Taungurung guides and our guests to meet up, be themselves, have genuine conversations and celebrate the vibrancy of our living culture.
This plan sets out the vision and goals for the next five years (2021-2025). It’s our key guide in the way we prioritise our time and resources. It will assist the Board in reviewing TLaWC’s direction and progress, and it will guide us in aligning budgets with strategic outcomes and community programs.
