Local Aboriginal corporation receives funding for app for Yinjibarndi cultural awareness

An Aboriginal corporation has received a funding boost to help develop an app to keep its cultural history alive.

The Juluwarlu Group Aboriginal Corporation received $152,428 from Lotterywest to develop a Yinjibarndi cultural awareness and education applications.

The application provides an additional educational resource for Yindjibarndi and non-Indigenous educators and employers.

It is hoped the program will be used by educational institutions, workplaces and the wider community to allow people to have access to cultural knowledge and work towards bridging the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people.

JGAC cultural learning manager Shelley Parsons said the idea for the project came from concerns among the Juluwarlu elders and the community that children were not receiving enough cultural history and knowledge. “We’ve got a lot of information in our extensive archive at the Juluwalu,” she said.

“We’ll be drawing on that information to put into the digital app and anything that is missing, the elders and thecommunity will be able to provide.”

Yindjibarndi elder Tootsie Daniels said the application would help keep young people connected to the land.

JGAC hopes to have the application finished within a year.