Naracoorte Caves Internship

Hi all,

Today is the first day of my internship at Naracoorte Caves. I'm down here to do some work on the conservation of the caves themselves. I'll be down here for about a week before coming back to Adelaide to work on the report (though I may yet find myself back down here in the new year).

So far its been fantastic, and just a bit full on. I arrived lunch time yesterday, and jumped straight into looking around Victoria Fossil Cave. I've spent this morning crawling around on my hands and knees while getting acquainted with Wet Cave, before heading to Blanche Cave where there is some amazing historic graffiti.

This afternoon I've been investigating Alexandra Cave, and will soon head back to Wet Cave to see if I can find any historic graffiti there, as well as taking another look at some of its conservation issues...

The End! Almost...

We have survived another year! Well done and congrats to all the Directed Studies crew! Our presentations were awesome! We definitley deserve a bit of a break!

I really enjoyed the Directed Studies project, I think it will come in handy next year when I write my thesis! Not only that but it also widened my contacts outside the usual circle of people which is always beneficial. I learnt how to do posters and to make sure that the people who print the posters are not away sick the week it is due!!!

Not many last thoughts, my brain isnt actually capable of much at this stage! One last shout out to Alice, cheers for all your help and support over the last semester! Now I just have to wait for the results! Dum dum dum! :)

Merry Chrissy and New Year everyone!

Final blog for semester

It is hard to believe that the semester is all but over. It has been quite a challenge completing two subjects this semester while working a two week on, two week off roster as an archaeologist. This semester has ensured that I have honed my time management skills and kept the procrastinating to the barest minimum, something I must admit I do not always have under control. The most difficult thing has been the shear exhaustion of working a 10 hour day in the field, then possibly 1 - 2 hours of paperwork back in my room at the end of the day. No time for assignments when I am in the field. When it is time for my two weeks off, it is very difficult to get stuck into the books and complete assignments, all I want to do is sleep and not have to think. Not good when you have a mass of readings and assignments to do.

Studying distance education is also a challenge. It can be invaluable as you can fit your schedule around other commitments, but it is a very lonely way of studying. Just having other students to bounce ideas off of, to complain about assignments too and just basically for companionship of someone who is going through the same dramas that you are, is one of the things that I have missed most this semester. I had never really appreciated before just how much the other students had contributed to my enjoyment and understanding of the subjects I was studying, how much I miss the whole university experience. It certainly has been a very different perspective of university life.

Don't get me wrong, to complete my Diploma of CHM by distance eduction has been an absolute blessing. Without the option of doing so, I would probably not have worried about ever finishing it. This way I get to work in the field I have been studying so hard to get into and I get to finish my degree at the same time. For people who can not get to classes it is fantastic, but it can also be very insular which is something that those thinking about doing classes by distance education should be aware of.

Well best of luck everyone with your results and I hope you all got as much out of your Directed Studies as I did.

last thoughts on my practicum

Well, I think it is time to lay down my last thoughts on my practicum. It was a great experience work with AARD heritage officers who did everything to provide me with all materials and information related to Indigenous heritage in South Australia. Peter Brit and Heidi Crow you were fantastic. But lets get back to the track. My experience with this agency included field trips to Flinders Rangers, Port Augusta and a couple of workshops as mentioned on my previous posts.

I would like to say that management of Indigenous Cultural Heritage is a process with imperfecttions tipical of such sensitive issue. One of the main problems seems to be the ineffectiveness of the Aboriginal Heritage Act 1988. This Act was supposed to protect Indigenous culture but in practical terms it does not happen judging by the numbers of Ministerial decisions taken against indigenous interests. Economic interests had always prevailed against Indigenous interests and this situation led some Elders to ask why reviewing the Act if on the end of the day nothing will change? This question reflects the ordeal of Indigenous communities. Furhter, the way Traditional Owners are treated in a paternalistic way does not help build relationships based in mutual respect and this leads to miscomunication and absence of communication at all in some cases.

However, the situation outside there is not that bad because the new Act apparently will include some aspects considered important by Indigenous communities as expressed on Scoping Paper issued by the Government of South Australia and suggestions received, as part of the reviewing process, from the Joint Aboriginal Heritage Committee Disscussion Paper. This paper is considered the most contemporary document in Australia about a Heritage Act. It is considered as such because it addresses Indigenous problems in an Aboriginal perspective which hapens for the first time in Australia's history according to David Baker the man on charge of the reviewing process.All in all, this is a long process which request involvement of all parties in an unprecedent level and constant dialogue to overcome future problems and misunderstandings.Nevertheless, change of attitudes is a must otherwise any effort to improve conditions will be jeopardize. It includes a new educational approach where Indigenous heritage is thought in schools to start to familiarize people with this culture and history.

Presentations

What a second semester it has been! The last few months have gone by in a blur with the research work needed for my 'ethnohistory of Tea Tree Gully' project. It is amazing the effects of focussing on one area for quite some time can have on a person too. Now it is difficult for me to look around Adelaide and Tea Tree Gully's landscape and not imagine Kaurna people living traditionally among the beautiful vegetation plains. It has also made me think more on a daily basis, of the effects that colonisation has had on Kaurna people.

In general it has increased my awareness of the need to include Indigenous histories, stories and culture into education systems. I think it should be viewed as an important part of Australian history lessons given in primary schools so that children grow up knowing how special the land is to Indigenous people and are taught respect for Aboriginal culture.

I have enjoyed this topic, both for its challenges and rare insights into the historical literature necessary for the report. Tomorrow marks the end of the topic and the beginning of research presentations. Goodluck everyone!

Done and Dusted

Whew! It took a lot of work but I too am celebrating with the rest of the Directed Studies gang! We got to hand up our work on Monday! Now all thats left is the poster and presentation on Friday! (ah!)

Fern Avenue has been an interesting ride. From sorting out thirteen boxes of all sorts of materials to meeting with the Unley Museum and Community Gardens Group, what has been found? Significance wise: The collection has lots of local significance for the Community Gardens. To them it represents the history of their Gardens and they feel a strong connection to the folks that worked all those long hours to make some of the best jam in Adelaide (apparently!)

The collection itself is not in the best of shape so the Community Gardens Group has decided to take control of the entire lot and incorporate it into a landscape plan next to the remains of the factory. Some of the metal, glass and ceramic artefacts will be incorporated into some paving and a mosaic of the Fullarton Jam Factory logo. A few of the more fragile and interesting artefacts such as the toy car and bone handled toothbrush will go in cabinets on display in the area. The rest of the material will be reburied on the site of the 2000 excavations.

I think this is a fantastic end to the project. Being able to return an archaeological collection to its original context is something that should happen more often! People are running out of room and time to study collections so why not return them to where they came from? With proper documentation in place, there is no reason why they cannot be re-excavated in the future and studied.