The Worawa Dreaming Trail
The Worawa Dreaming Trail was developed by Aboriginal Elders as an educational tool to record and celebrate aspects of traditional culture and lifestyle of Victorian Aboriginal tribes and clans. This land once formed part of the Coranderrk Aboriginal Reserve which became a refuge for The Kulin in the wake of dispossession from traditional lands – The Woiwurrung, Boonwurrung, Taungwurrung, Djadjawurrung and the Wathawurrung.
Within the Dreaming Trail are memorial poles to honour each of the 38 Victorian Aboriginal tribes. These are set against a backdrop of the peaks of Mt Tonne-be-wong, Toole-be-wong and Donna-be-wong and neighbouring Coranderrk bush land, with Birrarung, river of mist, to the west.
A memorial to the Children of Coranderrk is located on the island in the billabong.
The Dreaming Trail introduces the general public to a special understanding of the natural world and Aboriginal cultural heritage through the promotion of Aboriginal culture, history and environment.
The Smoking Ceremony is a symbolic spiritual cleansing for visitors to honour the Spirit Ancestors and all the Aboriginal family clans that walked this land.
We honour the Spirit Ancestors: Waa the Crow and Bunjil the Eaglehawk. Crow and Eaglehawk are our moities.
Living in the natural environment
Aboriginal people live in harmony with the land. On the Dreaming Trail visitors may see wildlife that includes the Eastern grey kangaroo, echidna, red bellied black snake, tiger snake, kookaburra,
black swan, Australian ibis, Australian pelican, eagle, crow, sulphur crested cockatoo, red tailed black cockatoo, pied cormorant, wood duck, frogs, king parrot, galah, willy wagtail, possum. These animals may represent the totem of Aboriginal people. Totems are inherited through an individual’s mother or father and are passed on to each generation.
The History Walk
The History Walk honours twenty-one individuals who were ‘change makers’ in Aboriginal community development.
They have been grouped within five categories to help to emphasise the common qualities and shared experiences of the individuals.
These categories are:
- Fighting for change
- Visions for the future
- Distinction in their fields
- Sharing knowledge and wisdom
- Leaders of their people
Purpose
The History Walk aims to:
Educate Aboriginal youth and other community members about Victorian Aboriginal history and the historical, political and community leadership of Elders of the Victorian Aboriginal communities that now celebrate cultural survival.
Increase knowledge and awareness of the cultural heritage of Victorian Aboriginal peoples with a particular emphasis on Aboriginal values, history and stories.
Record, celebrate and share the traditional and contemporary culture, stories, knowledge, history and experiences of Aboriginal people and celebrate Aboriginal achievement.
Educate the broader community of the dispossession, dislocation and displacement of Aboriginal peoples from their traditional lands and the suppression of Aboriginal cultural ceremony, language, traditions knowledge systems, social order and kinship systems, imposed government policies and the effect on contemporary Aboriginal peoples.
Emphasize respect for Aboriginal Leadership and self determination reinforcing Aboriginal identity, achievement and cultural pride.