An eye for elegance

Local First Nations woman Alinta Palmer is making significant leaps and bounds as a budding photographer.

Taking to the streets of Dimboola for the town’s annual steam punk festival, Alinta was able to capture some truly special moments at the weekend event in late April, where thousands gathered for the festivities.

Alinta was among several community members who joined Goolum Goolum’s photography workshop in early April.

Under the wing of tutor professional photographer Matt Dooling, Alinta has quickly been able to take what Matt has described as a natural eye for photography to the next level.

Matt said he could see a lot of potential in Alinta from the first session and didn’t hesitate to recommend her to volunteer for the Wimmera Steampunk Festival.

“I could tell from early on that Alinta had natural-born ability to capture great photos and with her enthusiasm I thought it would be the perfect fit to offer her the opportunity to volunteer for the festival,” he said.

“I had a double booking for myself where the steampunk festival was asking me to take photos, except I had a wedding booked in the same day!

“With the Camera Club we were able to secure several volunteers to meet the festival’s needs and Alinta absolutely fit the description of what they needed.”

Goolum Goolum is excited to share more of the communities photos in coming weeks. We also hope to see our students submit some of their work into our annual NAIDOC Week Art Exhibition slated for later this year.

Nominations open today for Traditional Owners of Country in Victoria to stand as candidates for the second term of the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria.

The Assembly represents Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people on the journey to Treaty in Victoria and will hold its General Elections from 13 May to 3 June this year.

Assembly Co Chair and proud Nira illim bulluk man of the Taungurung Nation, Marcus Stewart, said the foundations and process for Treatymaking was now in place and the next Assembly would be tasked with negotiating the actual statewide Treaty.

“This election is self-determination in action. If you’re a Traditional Owner, please, consider putting your hand up to stand as a candidate to help make sure Treaty de- livers tangible improvements for the lives of our people. Treaty won’ t negotiate itself, we need people to stand up and represent our mob on this incredible journey.”

As well as negotiating a statewide Treaty, in its next term the Assembly will help empower the diverse Traditional Owner groups in Victoria to negotiate Treaties in their areas that reflect specific aspirations and priorities.

The nomination period for candidates will be from 3 to 24 April 2023. Voting will take place from 13 May to 3 June 2023, with mob able to cast votes in person, online or in the post.

LearnmoreabouttheAssembly ElectionsatTreatyElections.org.