The maintenance of Kaanju language, knowledge and knowledge systems, as well as the customs and laws governing how we relate to our land, associated resources, each other and other people, is one of the greatest challenges we face today. The community at Chuulangun are addressing this issue directly by making the commitment to return permanently to homelands where we are in a better position both physically and spiritually to reconnect with our land, which is the foundation of our entire existence. Our objectives in relation to knowledge and information transfer are:
- To promote and facilitate the transfer of Kaanju language, cultural knowledge, skills, custom and law to the younger generation of Kaanju people.
- To protect and maintain Kaanju language, culture, custom and law for the benefit of current and future generations of Kaanju people.
- To educate the wider public on Kaanju language, culture, custom and law.
The strategies we will use to achieve these objectives are:
- Facilitation of homelands development that will enable Kaanju people (young and old) to access traditional homelands on a permanent basis.
- Development of an education programme for the transfer of Kaanju knowledge and skills to the younger generation.
- Development of a computer based information storage and retrieval system for Kaanju knowledge.
- Repatriation of Kaanju knowledge and cultural material from museums, institutes, archives and private collections.
- Establishment of a museum/keeping place on homelands for the storage/display of Kaanju artefacts, databases and other cultural material.
- Continue recording Kaanju language and knowledge in a culturally appropriate manner.
- Apply Kaanju knowledge and skills by: Producing resources for Kaanju and general education purposes (e.g. books, videos, handouts, posters, Kaanju Ngaachi web site); Incorporating Kaanju knowledge in school curricula and other formal education courses; Using knowledge and skills 'on country' (e.g. fire management).
A number of the projects we have in progress and under development have as objectives the transfer of Kaanju knowledge, information and skills to the younger generation. Our Weeds Project and Kaanju Ethno-ecology Project, in particular, will facilitate the transfer of Kaanju knowledge and information to the younger generation and the maintenance of Kaanju knowledge systems.
Kaanju people are in the process of repatriating knowledge, information and artefacts from institutions and museums. Chuulangun Aboriginal Corporation Chairman, David Claudie, has recently returned from the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS) in Canberra and the Museum of Victoria where he had discussions with indigenous collection curators about the repatriation of Kaanju material.
