FIRST Nations knowledge and talent is being shared with the community through a two-day festival at the University of Newcastle.
The Rising from the Embers Festival is a collaboration between the university and the Wollotuka Institute held at Park on the Hill across May 27 and 28.
According to organisers, the two-day festival aims to increase community access to knowledge around land and water management best practices, to provide a platform for local businesses and to showcase Hunter talent.
Raymond Kelly is an event organiser and recruitment officer at the Wollotuka institute. He said "the big word for the event is inclusion".
"We want people to feel like they belong to the space. Both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal," Mr Kelly said.
"I deal with a lot of non-Aboriginal people in many different areas of my job plus my personal life and what I find is that people have a hunger and an urge to want to learn.
"By providing a platform that is totally inclusive and welcoming to everybody it kind of breaks down that initial barrier and people feel a lot more comfortable in having those chances to learn."
Friday's event was an opportunity for year 11 and 12 students from the region to engage with local organisers, traditional knowledge sharers and explore university pathways.
Students from Plattsburgh Public School showcased their talent through traditional dance, with male students also playing the yidaki (didgeridoo).
Along with groups such as Speaking in Colour and Midnight Dreaming, Hunter Local Land Services (LLS) were part of the knowledge-sharing event.
LLS senior land services officer, Toby Whaleboat, described days like Rising from the Embers as "hugely important" for getting young Aboriginal people engaged with tertiary options such as land management.
Mr Whaleboat graduated from the University of Newcastle's environmental science degree in 2011. While he said the Hunter is a leader in cultural engagement around land management, his focus is to "support the Aboriginal community in building their capacity".
"Our priorities are to increase Aboriginal participation in conservation and ecosystem management and bring them up to supervisory and project management roles," he said.
"Traditional land management and ecological knowledge is extensive and we haven't really tapped into it."
"I have been working with Elders throughout the region and with Tocal College to help young people work up through a Certificate III, IV and Diploma in land management."
The event's title was chosen as a link to the cultural practice of slow burning. It is also a reference to the "ongoing fire" within Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and communities in keeping culture and identity ongoing.
While Friday was focused on future students, the event's second day is "about inviting people in and making sure they have the opportunity to come and learn from Aboriginal people and Aboriginal culture".
"In the spirit of Reconciliation Week and coming together we find it a wonderful opportunity," Mr Kelly said.
"As Goori or Koori people, we have to provide these opportunities for other people to come and learn.
"We want people to have that opportunity to scratch that itch and learn what they can from our people."
