The West Arnhem Regional Council, Kakadu Ward by-election has been announced, with 1 councillor vacancy to be filled.  Candidate nominations are now open and will close at 12 noon on Friday 18 August, no late nominations will be accepted.  The NT Electoral Commissioner Iain Loganathan is encouraging anyone who is interested in nominating as a candidate to make sure they are aware of the nomination process and eligibility requirements.

"There are a number of resources available to potential candidates on our website and I encourage anyone who is interested to contact the NT Electoral Commission for more information” said Iain Loganathan.
“I also recommend anyone thinking of nominating to be a candidate to contact the West Arnhem Regional Council to discuss the role and responsibilities of a councillor.”

A mobile voting team will be visiting locations in the Kakadu Ward from Thursday 7 September to Saturday 9 September.  Voting will be available in Jabiru on the afternoon of Friday 8 September and the morning of Saturday 9 September.  Early voting will also be available in the NT Electoral Commission Darwin office from Monday 4 September to Friday 8 September.

To accommodate electors unable to vote in person, postal vote applications are now open and will close at the following times:

• Overseas postal vote applications – 6pm on Tuesday 5 September
• Local postal vote applications - 6pm on Thursday 7 September

The NT Electoral Commission is working closely with the West Arnhem Regional Council to raise awareness and encourage voter participation in the by-election.  Information regarding the West Arnhem Regional Council, Kakadu Ward by-election and the nomination process is available on the NT Electoral Commission website.

NAIDOC Week in Minjilang was special this year and it was wonderful to see the whole community come together to celebrate ‘For Our Elders’.

The day involved Welcome to Country and flagraising, followed by tug-of-war, dunk a dolly, kangaroo spear throwing, corroboree, waterslide and kids relays.  Thank you to everyone who participated and assisted to run the activities.

To celebrate the 2023 NAIDOC Week theme ‘For Our Elders’, the West Arnhem Regional Council team in Warruwi handed all Elders in the community a certificate of recognition at the Elders recognition awards ceremony.

They acknowledged them for their hard work, dedication, contribution and commitment throughout their time. We are so grateful we are still strong in our language and culture all because our Elders have kept them alive for us today.   The list of activities which were held included spear throwing contest, damper making, weaving workshop, spear making class, traditional dancing and singing, footy (Men’s), basketball (Youths & Women’s), Tug of War, limbo rock game (kids), youth disco and much more!

West Arnhem Regional Council’s works team in Minjilang are thrilled with the newest piece of machinery on the island.

The new 1.8t excavator was purchased by Council through the Northern Territory Government’s Immediate Priority Grants (IPG) program, and will be put to great use supporting the delivery of Council’s municipal services within the community.  As Minjilang is an island community, it is really important for Council to be self-sufficient and prepared to fulfil all operations relating to parks and gardens, roads and waste.

Council also has an important role to play in maintaining community safety in relation to disaster preparedness.   Since there was an engine failure in Minjilang’s backhoe there was no machinery which could undertake excavation works, so the new excavator is a much needed asset within the fleet which allows great capacity for our team. 

The new machinery also provides further training and development opportunities for our team on the ground.  Council wishes to thank the Northern Territory Government for the support.

Charles Darwin University’s (CDU) Art Gallery will be teeming with bold and colourful hand-printed textiles this month, with the launch of new exhibition Manburrba: our story of printed cloth from Bábbarra Women’s Centre.

The exhibition celebrates the creative journey undertaken by Maningrida women over the past 37 years, featuring more than 85 striking and colourful hand-printed textiles made by 24 artists, as well as limited edition prints-on-paper, sculptures and basketry.
It is the first major survey exhibition of Bábbarra’s textile printmaking to be held in the Northern Territory.

Bábbarra Women’s Centre artist Raylene Ngarridjdjan Bonson said her artwork in the Manburrba exhibition highlights three generations of textile artists in her family.
“I feel happy to see my mum’s printed textile featured in the Manburrba exhibition,” Ms Bonson said.
“I printed the lino-block print Marebu (pandanus mat) on behalf of my mother. I hope it inspires Rosanna, my eldest daughter to print for me.”

CDU Art Gallery and exhibition curator Dr Joanna Barrkman said this partnership rekindles connections from more than 25 years ago, when the University was active in introducing limited-edition printmaking techniques to artists in Maningrida.
“It has been an honour to partner with Bábbarra Women’s Centre to curate this exhibition over eighteen months with the stunning textiles produced by this innovative group of women,” Dr Baarkman said.

“Workshops in lino-block printing and etching were delivered at Bábbarra Women’s Centre in 1998-99. The Manburrba exhibition charts the terrain covered by the artists since that time.”

Manburrba is the word for cloth in the Kuninjku language of Arnhem Land.  As one of Australia’s major First Nations textile enterprises, Bábbarra Women’s Centre has fostered the technique of printing on cloth for many years, with their reputation for large-scale, repeat, screen-printed textiles spanning Australia and the globe.  “Bábbarra’s prints and textiles have been widely exhibited, nationally and internationally, in cities such as Los Angeles, Kolkata, Paris and Sydney,” she said.

“Textile art has emerged as the creative medium to achieve improved economic livelihoods for three generations of Maningrida’s women, while also enabling them to maintain, transmit and express their cultural practices and expand their creativity on Country.”
Manburrba: our story of printed cloth from Bábbarra Women’s Centre opens at CDU Art Gallery on Friday 4 August 2023 at 6pm. The exhibition continues until 15 October 2023. Story credit: Charles Darwin University 

Sportspeople from across West Arnhem Land will compete in Jabiru at the 2023 Kurrung Sports Carnival next month.

Proudly hosted by West Arnhem Regional Council, this popular 2-day sports carnival unites talented men and women from the five West Arnhem Land communities of Jabiru, Gunbalanya, Maningrida, Warruwi and Minjilang.  With the communities of West Arnhem Land having a proud tradition of sporting excellence, the Kurrung Sports Carnival is a significant event on the calendar and a key contributor towards building stronger communities. 

This year, Kurrung Sports Carnival will take place on 1 and 2 September and will feature a men’s AFL competition, men’s and women’s basketball and for the first time, a women’s AFL 9s contest. With the growing interest in women’s football in the region, this is an exciting addition to the carnival’s program and Council looks forward to showcasing this new sport following the opening ceremony on the Friday afternoon.

An equally exciting addition to the carnival this year, will be a cultural dance performance known as Manyardi/Kunborrk by the communities to wrap up the 2023 event.  To promote and celebrate positive sportsmanship and fair play through the event, this year’s carnival will once again feature the ‘Spirit of Kurrung’ cup which will be awarded to the community and individuals which proudly display these qualities. Event partner, No More Violence campaign, will sponsor this award and Council are proud to continue to work with the campaign to promote the prevention of domestic and family violence in the Northern Territory.

Gunbalanya is the third community to welcome the National Wellbeing Alliance and their Mental Health First Aid and Suicide Prevention course.

This 2-day program was a great opportunity in the mental health area and culturally adapted for indigenous communities. This course is a safe space to talk about the different mental health issues people go through and how we all can help families around when these situations. Jabiru will be next in August.