9 July 2007

Australia’s first online database solely on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander connections to the Great Barrier Reef will be officially launched today (9 July 2007) as part of NAIDOC Week.

Story Place contains around 1000 annotated references on books, reports and electronic resources that have been produced on topics relevant to Traditional Owner groups over the last 100 years.

The nationally-significant online resource was developed by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA) as a comprehensive reference on the connection Traditional Owner groups have to the Great Barrier Reef.

GBRMPA Chairman Virginia Chadwick said the resource celebrated how Traditional Owners used their sea country and its significance to people’s lives.

“This is the first time all this information about traditional connections to the Great Barrier Reef has been housed in one location,” she said.

“The aim is to share information and knowledge about Traditional Owners and their relationships with land and sea country in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park.

“We’ve worked closely with Traditional Owners to develop something that is both useful, meaningful and provides a well-rounded understanding of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander marine-related issues.”

Ms Chadwick said Traditional Owners were encouraged to use the database to search for information relevant to their group and issues such as sea rights and cooperative management.

“For Traditional Owners it is an opportunity to access information that has been written about their group in a variety of mediums over the last 100 years,” she said.

“We will continue to update and add to the information so current marine issues are captured in the database.

“We have worked hard to ensure the database is culturally appropriate and meaningful for Traditional Owners.

“We believe Story Place has a lot to offer Traditional Owner groups as well as students, researchers and marine managers.”

The database contains published information on topics ranging from international treaties and dreaming stories to Indigenous tourism and media representation.

The earliest entry is a book from 1907 about traditional burials and funerary arrangements, with the database also housing a range of recent newspaper articles.

The database was developed in collaboration with the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies in Canberra, the National Native Title Tribunal, the National Library of Australia and James Cook University.

The database is free to use and able to be searched via the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority website.