Indigenous heritage to take root

By Lia Bichel
FIVE Year 6 students from Beaconhills College want to raise awareness about the City of Casey’s Indigenous heritage by planting a special garden at Wilson’s Botanic Park.
The group of three girls and two boys is part of a community problem solving division called their group ICUC, which team leader Amy said, stands for Indigenous Culture Unites Casey. It also plays on the acronym ICUC, I see- you see, in an effort to highlight the unseen Indigenous history in Berwick.
They have been chosen to represent Victoria in their division of Future Problem Solvers at Sea World in October and will speak about an Indigenous Garden they will be planting, which will be filled with bush tucker and bush medicine plants.
“We picked to speak about indigenous culture because it is an important subject,” team leader Amy said.
“We decided that planting a garden and posting information about indigenous plants would be a good start.”
They consulted local Indigenous groups to ensure the plants have historical relevancy. The garden will also be equipped with signage with information about the plants and how they were used by the Indigenous community.
“We want the information to be interesting to all age groups, and highlight how a traditional family would use the plants in their daily lives,” Amy said.
The group has just secured a $1500 grant from Ross Trust Foundation to help fund the garden, Amy said, and they hoped to receive plant donations.
The garden will be available to everyone for viewing after it is planted within the next few weeks.
“Members of the local Casey Council and Wilson Botanical Park have been very helpful, by providing both their time, as well as a wealth of resources to assist us,” Amy said.