Dhelkaya everyone! My name is Racquel Kerr, and I am a proud Dja Dja Wurrung, Boonwurrung woman filming on beautiful Boonwurrung Country at the moment.
And before I begin I would like to pay respects to Elders past and present, Ancestors who carved, you know this Legacy and these paths that enabled us to walk upon. And to everybody who is streaming I pay respects to the country that you are all watching from, and are able to connect with while you spend your time on this earth. And connection to Country for is, so important- It is the lifeblood of our identity and belonging. Being able to listen to the eucalypts, the birds, to the environment, to the spirit that is embedded amongst all of these things.
It also gives us a strength in being able to practice our culture and revive our Traditions, our language, and our presence; even in spaces that are - that's a plane. As you know are forcing us to walk in between two worlds constantly on a daily basis.
These words are separated as our traditional obligations to culture and lore as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People. And then this Western world, the current modern world that we live in today and at times, it can be very overwhelming. However, the reassurance of being surrounded by Country, is that strong affirmation that you know, if you look after Country and pay respects to Country it will look after you.
So with that being said, I would like to welcome everybody to the third Victoria Nature Festival and the very first Great Victoria Nature Walk, where the point is to get out onto Country and observe the environment around you. What can you hear? What can you smell? What can you see? How does it affect you? How does it affect your spirit- your Murrup?
hHow does it ground you in being able to explore what is in your backyard- your doorstep ? You know, we are very lucky to have some of the most diverse environments in the world that had been cared for by my Ancestors for generations upon generations and that we are really lucky to still see the byproduct of that in small pockets today.
So with that being said, I'd like to say Walatjalanu Mirapal Djandank-i Murrup-i Mutjarra: Embrace Country, embrace spirit, embrace love for Country. And like I said, if you look after Country, it will look after you. Dumarr Nyakinarr (thank you and goodbye), thanks for having me.
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