June 30 2024 marks the conclusion of the Doomadgee Language, Literacy Numeracy and Digital Skills Remote Community Pilot, now known as Gamburija Gangga. As with any pilot, an end to this stage is inevitable. However, it is our hope that the resources and community strengths developed, and the lessons learnt through the pilot will see Gamburija Gangga continue in the Doomadgee community to help ensure the preservation of local languages and further develop vital skills and knowledge.
Over the past three years the program has grown into a valuable aspect of the Doomadgee community. It has provided jobs for up to five staff, three of whom obtained the very first Coding Aboriginal Languages for Indigenous Literacy Certificates in the nation. This Certificate III course equips community participants with the skills to collect, categorise and convert oral First Language elements into effective reading and writing resources. To have three people with the certificate in Doomadgee is a fantastic outcome for local language and for the community.
The program has also established a ‘Living First Language’ digital platform for the local Gangalidda language. These platforms aim to preserve and revitalise Indigenous First Languages and turn them into dynamic, community-led and interactive digital literacy apps. Throughout the program, participants have contributed to the Gamburija Gangga platform, which contains Gangalidda words, along with the stories, images and cultural knowledge that surrounds them.
The program can also be expanded to work in other local languages including Waanyi and Garawa if desired by community members of these language groups.
The program has not been without its challenges. Through the resilience and flexibility of the program management group and local team members, we approach the end of the pilot stronger for having overcome these obstacles. Co-designed and launched shortly after the end of the first wave of COVID lockdowns, subsequent outbreaks were hugely disruptive to the program’s delivery.
Other community pressures also impacted the number of participants engaged at different times throughout the duration of the program.
It is testament to the tenacity and strength of the Gamburija Gangga lead and mentors that despite these hurdles, they continued to advocate for the program and draw the community to it. For this reason, there have still been numerous successes throughout the program, including triumphs such as Lyric, who had been widely regarded as illiterate, with support developed consistent literacy and numeracy skills during his time in the program. Testament to the development of these skills, Lyric has now been offered a new role on a local station at Lawn Hill.
The program also grew in technical capability over the course of the pilot, with a remote hub developed and deployed by the ALNF team, which allows the ‘Living First Language’ platform to operate independent of the internet. This improves the safety of the cultural information contained in the platform and allows it to be used on-country. This makes it even more useful for the community and for collecting the place-based stories and knowledge that surrounds language.
Our hope is that these factors; a knowledgeable and willing community, numerous community-members well versed in the program, and an established Gangalidda language platform, make the program appealing for a new community organisation to step into. The pilot partners are actively approaching potential community hosts for the program and will work with any suitable organisations to ensure a smooth transition can be achieved and that this valuable program remains in the community it was designed to support.
As a final note all three organisations would like to acknowledge the enthusiasm, respect and effort the entire program management team have shown throughout the course of the pilot. The partnership of our three organisations brought this pilot to the community and has developed a fantastic opportunity for Gamburija Gangga to live on in the Doomadgee community.
Please direct any queries regarding the program or transition to My Pathway Communications manager Aidan Lewis, 07 4033 3585 or community@mypathway.com.au.
Sincerely,
Paul Dodd Founder and Director, Corporate Culcha | Mary-Ruth Mendel Co-Founder, Co-Chair, Executive Director, The Australian Literacy & Numeracy Foundation | Nicole Oke Managing Director, My Pathway |