“Country is inherent to our identity. It sustains our lives in every aspect - spiritually, physically, emotionally, socially, and culturally. It is more than a place.”
- naidoc.org.au
(image sourced from greeningaustralia.org.au)
The 2021 Naidoc theme Heal Country! is extremely relevant to the time in which we are living, as all around Australia, our natural environment is being desecrated at an alarming rate. Our First Nations communities are very often on the frontlines, defending our precious resources and sacred natural sites. Here we take a look at some the underlying messages from this year’s theme to the wider Australian community.
Greening Australia is one of three nominated charities that Life Apparel actively supports with each sale. We wanted to share with you some of the wonderful work that Greening Australia are currently doing alongside Traditional owners, Indigenous rangers and local communities to help restore and preserve our natural environment.
One such project is the Growing Noongar Seed Collection Capacity project:
"South-west Western Australia is an internationally recognised biodiversity hotspot, containing plants and animals found nowhere else on the planet. However, a legacy of over-clearing in this area has also led to land degradation and fragmented habitat.
To restore these landscapes, our large-scale restoration work needs large amounts of viable, local, native seed. Greening Australia is collaborating with Noongar peoples to heal and manage Country, and align training, cultural connection and sustainable enterprise models with the need for seed".
- Greening Australia
One of the collaborating artists of our 2021 Heal Country! collection, Tyrown Waigana, a Wardandi Noongar and Saibai Islander man living on Noongar country created an artwork entitled Creation Spirits / Replenishment which explores this very topic.
“This work celebrates the natural self-healing and replenishment of the land, and the people that live in harmony with it.
The artwork is bright and colourful to reflect the natural cycles of a healthy country. The figures and faces throughout the work, paired with floral patterns and connecting lines represent creation spirits coming to replenish country after it's been destroyed.”
- Tyrown Waigana
You can learn more about Greening Australia’s projects here and learn more about Tyrown and his Creation Spirits / Replenishment collection here.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY
Life Apparel celebrates and acknowledges the traditional custodians of the land on which we live and work, the Kombumerri families of the Yugambeh Language Region. We pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging for their generosity and custodianship of Country throughout Australia.
We recognise and honour the ongoing connection and deep spiritual relationship that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have to this Country, and acknowledge the unique role they play in caring for and protecting it for future generations. As an Australian-led boutique label and proud allies, we demonstrate our respect for First Nations peoples through our commitments to environmentally sustainable and ethical business practices. We recognise their continuing connection to land and waters, and thank them for protecting our natural resources and ecosystems.
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