Tumut community men's Aboriginal practices
The Tumut Brungle Gundagai Area Aboriginal Community (TBGAAC) men’s Aboriginal practices program aims to promote cultural knowledge and traditional practices within the community. Launched in 2014, it offers Aboriginal men a forum in which to learn more about themselves and their heritage within Kosciuszko National Park and other nature reserves.
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The TBGAAC men’s Aboriginal practices program targets both men and male youths, presenting a culturally safe and respectful forum each week designed for conversation and the free exchange of ideas. These forums are facilitated by Aboriginal men and staff from NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS), and focus on enhancing the ability of local TBGAAC men to deal with park-related issues that touch on Aboriginal culture and nature conservation. The forums are both a means of empowerment and an attempt to transparently share the processes of park management with people who are directly affected by them.
Forums can include activities such as site visits, resource collection, tool-making, and group discussion. Certain activities present a chance for NSW National Parks staff to share their knowledge about Kosciuszko National Park with the men, and thus the wider Aboriginal Tumut community. The men also undertake a major project themselves that will be presented at the end of the program.