NAIDOC Week morning tea at Winton Wetlands celebrates Yorta Yorta heritage

By Alexander Dabb

Jul 8, 2024

Winton Wetland’s Education Centre will host a NAIDOC Week morning tea. It will include a smoking ceremony, similar to last year’s (pictured).

Winton Wetlands Education Centre is set to host its third annual NAIDOC Week morning tea on Friday, July 12, at 10am, with the enduring connections of Yorta Yorta people to Country to be explored.

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Cultural officer and proud Yorta Yorta woman Nikki James will speak at the event, alongside her colleague, restoration manager Dr Lisa Farnsworth, as they offer their insights into a ground-breaking new plants and planting guide.

‘A guide to the significant plants of Mokoan’, which is being released shortly, features more than 25 native plants indigenous to Mokoan, as the area is known to Yorta Yorta people.

The guide brings together information on traditional uses for these plants, alongside ecological information about the roles of these plants within the local ecosystem.

One of the aims of the guide and of this year’s talk, according to Ms James, will be to encourage more people to “walk together” and learn community-driven practices that honour cultural heritage and ecosystems — and so protect “the resilience and vitality of our wetland ecosystems for generations to come”.

The NAIDOC Week morning tea will explain more about the new guide in a friendly and informal setting, with bookings to be made through www.wintonwetlands.org.au/