Speak Out OCTOBER 2021 DIGITAL EDITION

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BRANCH NEWS NORTHERN TERRITORY

Barunga Sports, Music and Cultural Festival: On country engagement

Speech Pathology Australia Northern Territory Branch members have been taking advantage of the dry season weather and opportunities to authentically engage with community in the NT. In June, SPA was a community sponsor of Barunga Sports, Music and Cultural Festival. Barunga is located 50 km south of Katherine. Thousands of people travelled to Barunga for the festival from communities all around the Top End. NT Branch members attended to be part of the experience, to spend time listening and learning, and to talk with festival go-ers (about speech pathology and all sorts of other things too). And we had a fantastic time being part of it all! Barunga is a community of 363 people where 84% of people speak Kriol. Eighty three percent of the population in the community are Aboriginal, while 3% are Torres Strait Islander (ABS, 2016). The Barunga Festival occurs over three days and takes place in Barunga Community each Queens Birthday weekend. Festival attendees typically come and camp in the small community for the duration of the event and during this time the community quadruples in size! The festival offers a panoply of cultural experiences including workshops and concerts. Barunga Festival was cancelled due to COVID-19 in 2020 so the 2021 event was highly anticipated. A community member told us that everyone in Barunga

ABOVE Dancing at Barunga Festival, photo Emily Armstrong. BELOW Bea Staley, Erin Coonan, and Emily Armstrong promoting SPA at Barunga Festival, photo Bea Staley.

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Speak Out | October 2021