Sacred Country

In collaboration with the Sacred Heart Catholic School, the Sacred Country project sought to build resilience, sustainability and care for self, community and Country through education, regeneration and connection to place, food and people. The project directly linked to priority themes one and four - Local, regenerative food economy and Industry training, education and pride.

Collaborating with youth in the Valley, we sought to support and participate in an emergent co-design process with students at Sacred Heart Catholic School to create a project that works with Tasmanian Aboriginal elders and teachers in passing on knowledge of traditional edible natives and regenerative land management techniques to bridge a deeper connection with Country.

Through a series of co-design workshops, Aboriginal elders, teachers and students developed a program of activity based around sharing knowledge and education. They aimed to implement these techniques to regenerate their traditional Aboriginal bush garden, including adding interpretation of the types of edible plants and bush foods available on the school grounds, to share with others within the school and broader community.

Engaging with students and their families, the School have developed a program that provides a welcoming and culturally inclusive environment. A first workshop was held with staff, students and their families, supported by representatives from Nita Education, South East Tasmanian Aboriginal Corporation (SETAC) and Jason Smith (traditional fire practitioner), to design and structure the program.

In late September 2022, a second workshop was held where practical skills and knowledge was shared throughout the day, including assessment of areas that would form part of a regenerative burning program facilitated by Jason Smith.

Prior to the summer holiday break, a third workshop was held with staff and students conducting a series of traditional cool burns with practitioner Jason Smith. Students got to learn the principles behind the technique, and understanding the rationale behind the method.

Additional elements have been woven into the classroom, with students continuing their understanding and awareness of caring for Country, and sharing this knowledge among their peers.

The program culminated with a community ‘Blitz’ event held in June 2023 where the school’ traditional Aboriginal bush garden was the focus of the workshop. Through the workshop, the garden was regenerated through the planting of more edible bush foods and the removal of notorious weeds such as Gorse from problem areas.

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The Sacred Country project is one of several trial projects that were delivered during the development of the business plan for the Huon Valley Food Hub, to help inform this important foundational work. Further information about these projects and the broader Huon Valley Food Hub Business and Strategic Plan is available here.