Image: pigface and wattle, Trisha Hodge
The latest grant from the Australian Garden History Society’s Kindred Spirits Fund has been awarded to Trisha Hodge, a Palawa woman living near Nipaluna/Hobart for her book project, palawa tunapri – Tasmanian Aboriginal knowledge. The grant will contribute to the costs of designing and publishing the book, which should be completed by the end of 2025.
When this happens, readers will have the benefit of 20 years of Hodge’s work compiling a list of traditional uses for more than 340 Tasmanian native plants, categorised under food, medicine, tools and seasons. Hodge believes that by preserving and disseminating First Nations knowledge, the Tasmanian Aboriginal community can continue to grow stronger. This is not her knowledge, but the knowledge of her community, gathered and shared for over 40,000 years.
As well as helping Aboriginal people to continue to connect with their culture, the book aims to encourage non-Aboriginal people to appreciate the deep knowledge Aboriginal people have. It will inspire everyone to look after milaythina/Country better.
Chair of the Kindred Spirts Fund Advisory Panel, Colleen Morris, said:
the panel was unanimous in our assessment that this is a worthwhile project. I recall how well-received Hodge’s paper was in Hobart [at the 2022 AGHS annual conference] and support the opportunity to bring her project to a wider audience.
Palawa tunapri will appeal to garden enthusiasts looking for information on Australian native plants, tour guides, education departments, Parks and Wildlife, botanical gardens, land managers, cultural heritage advisors and visitors to Lutruwita/Tasmania. The publishing partner for this project is Fullers Bookshop, Hobart’s leading independent bookseller and publisher of a select range of books on Tasmania.
‘This is a project of enormous significance,’ said Tim Jarvis, Director of Fullers Bookshop, ‘and, so far as we’re aware, it would be the first of its kind in Tasmania.’
The Kindred Spirits Fund was established to foster education and the scientific, literary and artistic aspects of the Australian Garden History Society for the benefit of the Australian community.