Innovative Encounter with Nature

This week, we travelled to Minyon Falls, which in reality was an empty gorge devoid of water due to extreme drought. From the top of the gorge, I could see where the river used to flow through the vegetation, creating patches of palm trees in the dense rainforest. Above the gorge, Eucalyptus trees thrive in the dry climate. We learned that these trees are susceptible to forest fires because they are so dry and oily. While walking through the rainforest I noticed burnt bark on some trees and wondered if it was from a bush fire that was man made or a wildfire that was a natural occurrence. In one of our readings, Defining the Anthropocene , the authors, Lewis and Maslin state that humans have had a drastic influence on the environment including land transformation and altering the composition of the atmosphere. They suggest that the epoch we currently live in is not the Holocene, but the Anthropocene: an epoch that started with human’s significant alterations to Earth’s geology and eco...

The walk along the northern coastline, managed by the Bunjalung people in Arakwal country this week made me think about Aboriginal connection to land. Our guide, Auntie Delta, is an Arakwal custodian of the land and took us through the forest and up the coastline cliffs to the Cape Byron Lighthouse. Today, more than 66% of Arakwal people work on country and they gained their first Native Title in 1996, which is a major accomplishment for the Bundjalung people. She pointed out plants such as Eucalyptus which is used to cure headaches and make shelter and Swamp lilies that ease bug bites and jellyfish stings. She walked through the forest easefully, clearing parts of the path blocked by branches and smiling at the sun through the tree branches. Bruce Pascoe emphasized this relationship between country and people in his book Dark Emu , by including journal entry excerpts by colonizers. Some acknowledged the Aboriginal farming and fishing engenuity but couldn't understand how the re...