Applications are open to enrol in INDG3008, an incredible opportunity to learn about Indigenous cultural heritage on Country at Mungo National Park/Willandra Lakes Region World Heritage Area. 

Participants will learn from and work with Indigenous Rangers (formally Aboriginal Heritage Programs Officer, Willandra Lakes Region, NPWS) about different ways of managing cultural and resources in the Willandra Lakes region, and will have the opportunity to work on developing systems for maintaining ancestral traces in Country. This is a chance to learn about Country by being on Country with Indigenous Rangers, respecting the cultural and intellectual authority of the Traditional Owners and their authority and responsibilities for their places.

The Willandra Lakes Region World Heritage Area is shared between the three Traditional Owner groups — Barkandji/Paakantyi, Ngiyampaa, and Mutthi Mutthi — as well as NSW National Parks and Wildlife. It has been a place of significance for many millennia, and in the past 60 years has also been known by outsiders as containing some of the earliest and richest records of Indigenous life on this continent.

Convened by Prof Tim Denham (Archaeology) and Dr Ben Silverstein (Indigenous Studies/History), this course is taught in partnership with Indigenous Rangers who work with and on their Country. This field school offers an opportunity to develop practical insights into the perspectives and experiences of the peoples of this Country in a way that text-based classroom learning cannot.

Teaching dates

11–12 November: Pre-fieldwork classes (ANU Campus)

22–27 November: On Country program (Willandra Lakes Region World Heritage Area)

Week beginning 30 November (precise dates TBC): Post-fieldwork classes (ANU Campus)

Enrolment process and conditions

• Please apply for a permission code here by Friday 25 September.
• Students will be notified of acceptance by Monday 5 October.
• Space is limited to 12 students, and preference will be given to students completing the Major in Australian Indigenous Studies.
• On Country fieldwork costs ($500) will be required to be paid by students to cover travel, accommodation, and food.

For more information, please contact the course convenor: Dr Ben Silverstein