Learning on Country

Learning on Country – learning about the land and communities in different places, being taught by elders and people who knew that country, and sharing experiences with fellow learners – were always an important part of Tranby’s goals. So lots of people who studied at Tranby were involved in excursions, conferences or courses away from Glebe. Here are some Tranby on Country photos from the 1980s and 1990s.

Lynette Riley

I did the Adult Literacy Teaching and to gain common fodder to stimulate language and writing you have to have excursions.

Plus it helped me as the teacher to get to know my students better as people not just someone in my class. It helped the students to bond with each other. We created lots of great joint memories and lots of laughter.

So I think of my Tranby years with great fondness as I believe do the past students of that time.

Dave Morrissey

There were good reasons to have excursions at Tranby.

They are the only way to get first hand, on the ground experience of the depth and breadth of the Indigenous story across the landscape. And they enabled more meaningful links with people and organisations working on current issues. (Also a little fishing and a few bets at the TAB along the way)

And it brings benefits for all subjects.

Access is key. Getting to know who can do what, can fight you or be friends, can help advance or hinder your purpose, is really important. For Tranby students, first hand is the best way to do this. Every course can visit the friends and foes of its vision and that of its participants. From Architecture to Zoology... go see them, challenge them, learn from them, know them.

Do better, do different.

Do it your way.

Chris Milne

We had two types of excursions:

One was more course related, eg short visits around Sydney, often to Aboriginal organisations, political events, etc.

The second kind of excursions were for up to a week to engage with different communities, histories and landscapes. For example, one trip in the bus went through Broken Hill and up to Mutawintji NP where Badger Bates the ranger showed us around, shot and cooked a goat for dinner, and told local stories.

These excursions helped create bonds between the students. For students from outside NSW, or for those who had not travelled around much, I think that they put their own community background into a wider context of Aboriginal life around Australia, the commonalities and differences. All this created more confident and worldly young Aboriginal people.

What did Students get out of Excursions?

People who were Tranby students in the 1980s and 90s remember that excursions allowed them to enjoy sharing, bonding, and learning with other Indigenous students. Here are some examples:

Excursions in the 1980s

To Menindee, Lake Mungo and the South Coast.

These great photos are from Sue Fowler and Lindsy Fatnowna’s excursion at the end of their Business Studies course in 1985 to Menindee, Lake Mungo and then across the state to the South Coast. Sue and Lindsy later married and today live in Canberra.

Excursions in the 1990s

Wilcannia, Menindee and Willandra Lakes.

The following images: Learning how to build a camp with Aunty Beryl Carmichael, elder and teacher, at Menindee.

Joseph Brown remembers:

When we arrived at Menindee we pitched the tents and after that we went fishing. We went bushwalking and Beryl talked about the local Koori food and we tasted emus, berries and fish.

Crossing State Borders

Many students went on excursions with Tranby which took them across state borders. For some, it was the first time they had ever been to another state. Many of them gave feedback or wrote essays about their trip when they got back to Tranby.

Business Studies trip to Emerald, Qld 1993

Trip to Uluru in 1991

CAROL SIMON, 1991, went to Uluru and reported on her trip for the Newsletter that year:

The trip to Alice Springs and Yulara is a chance of a lifetime. The communities we were privileged to visit are something that I will never forget.

The Aboriginal people at Mutijulu (Uluru) have such pride in their land. One can understand that after seeing Uluru, which is the most beautiful site I have ever seen. It makes one want to join in their fight. They have to continue to fight for freedom just to say ‘THEIR LAND’.

The students were taken to sacred sites that no other tourist is allowed to see. The women were taken there by Mrs Patterson. Al this will be etched in my mind forever. It was good to see women play a major role in the community organisations now when it has been a male-dominated society for so long. The women are running the Institute for Aboriginal Development in Alice Springs with competence, strength and wisdom, putting the culture of Aboriginal people across the curriculum.

Other feedback from Alice Springs trip included:

‘Visiting all the different Aboriginal organisations was good. I really enjoyed visiting the Aboriginal community at Uluru, especially when the women from the community took the students out digging for witchetty grubs and then they cooked rabbits in the hot coals which was beautiful’. - KM

But there were also problems with some parts of these trips. Many students found the long bus trips really exhausting. That led to arguments and sometimes too much drinking. A number of students thought excursions should be dry.

Brambuk, the Grampians, Victoria 1993

Another trip that a lot of people enjoyed was to the Koori communities in the Grampians.

Building connections: the 2nd World Indigenous Youth Conference Darwin June 1993

As a part of a delegation of NSW representatives, Fiona Smith from Tranby was one of the many Indigenous peoples who gathered in Darwin, July 1993 for “The Second World Indigenous Youth Conference” organised by the United Nations. The 2000 delegates came from 29 countries from all around the world to honour the conference theme, “Claiming our Future”.

The conference provided Indigenous Youth the opportunity to listen, learn and participate in many workshops and discussions. The conference attendees were privileged to hear Elders like Bill Neidjie from Kakadu, NT, and the Grand Chief of the Council of Crees speak of issues impacting Indigenous people throughout the World.

The conference was being held on Larrakia Country, Fiona recalls Aunty Kathy Mills a Larrakia elder, called it a “corroboree of survival”.

The cultural exchange was rich and varied amongst the Indigenous delegations from the Aboriginal Nations of Australia and the Torres Strait Islands. The Saami people of Norway and Sweden, the Cree (Indian), Inuit (Eskimo from Canada), the Ainu from Japan and Dalit from India to name a few.

This conference empowered Indigenous Youth from all around the world. With this opportunity to represent and express their voice, the NSW delegation tabled their findings and recommendations from the 1st NSW Youth Meeting held in Wollongong earlier and organised through Blackbooks at Tranby.

Crossing International Borders

Tranby’s links with international movements has involved students and staff in international courses, conferences and field trips.

Canada 1979

Kevin Cook & Community Development class, Coady, 1979

In 1979 Kevin Cook did a community development course at Coady International College in Nova Scotia, eastern Canada, a key linkage which the Tranby Co-op had made.

There Cookie met Indians and many of the South Africans and Zimbabweans who came to Tranby later as visiting speakers and teachers.

Russia 1985

In 1985, Tranby was represented by a student, Grant Drage, (originally from WA) and student support counsellor, Karen Flick, (from Collarenebri) at the 12th World Festival of Youth and Students, in Moscow.

Grant Drage gave a long interview to fellow Tranby student Tom Evans after coming back from Moscow. There had been 4 Aboriginal people on the trip – Phil Moncrieff from WA, Gail Garvey from Newcastle in NSW and, from Tranby, Grant and Karen.

He remembered: ‘The main concept was to bring young people and students together to highlight problems concerning the youth of the world, such as exploitation of youth, especially women, environmental issues, freedom of speech and how in some countries this basic human right is refused and often ends in death’.

Caring for Country

Grant spoke about plants and the environment in the Environment Forum:

My main aim was to make people in other countries aware of the neglect shown to Australia’s environment. I endeavoured to bring an Aboriginal perspective into the forum. To show how white Australians today are still treating our Land so that Australia is turning into an arid desert.

Carrying the flag

Grant described the opening ceremony – the Aboriginal delegates wanted to march under the Aboriginal flag but the white Australians didn’t...

So when it came time to walk out into the stadium, the four Aboriginals grabbed the flag, put on our Land Rights T-shirts and ran out in front of the other Australians before they had a chance to stop us.

So we were the first Flag and people that the Russian people saw!

THIS WAS THE FIRST TIME THE FLAG WAS FLOWN OVERSEAS

(so far as we can find out)