HEALING ON COUNTRY

Join us at the launch event of the Healing On Country program, to be held during NAIDOC week, in Booderee National Park. Booderee is Aboriginal land. Crystal-clear waters meet beautiful white sand beaches, while high cliffs overlook the majestic Pacific Ocean. Booderee National Park features extraordinary native wildlife and is adorned with expansive botanic gardens. Our day will include: smoking ceremony, dance and connection presentations by local senior health workers and the Yuin community yaaning circles on the current state of health and areas of improvement for people and the natural environment on Yuin country eating together as a community with local produce and bush tucker weaving our collective story of the central purpose of nature based healing, and ultimately establishing a shared, healed Country. Proposed Agenda: 9.45 am: Arrive 10.00 am: Local connection: Smoking Ceremony, Ochre and Dance 11.00 am: Spotlight on Yuin Country Mayor Amanda Findley - Shoalhaven Council Lynne Allen - Shoalhaven Historical Society - Why We Need Healing To Be Advised - A Healed Country Sharon Bloxsome - Board member Illaroo Cooperative Aboriginal Cooperation - Signs Of Hope Paul McLeod, Jrumpinjinbah - Elder of the Yuin Country - A Healed Country Deborah Shepherd - CEO, SoulAdvisor and Director, SoulAdvisor Foundation - Our part 12 noon: Lunch - Yarning Circles With Lunch provided by Culunghutti Catering Establishing a shared, long-term vision of a healed Country How will we get there? 1.30pm: Wrap Up, Next Steps and Close About - Healing On Country Program Following this launch, we will look to further Cultural Awareness through training, written materials, events based on significant dates and ways to respectfully centralise First Nation understandings within the broader health ecosystem. Our pilot program will bring together allied, traditional, complementary and medical practitioners, within the local area to mutually explore traditional approaches to healing. In the spirit of reciprocity, opportunities will be provided for the First Nations community to draw from the rich therapeutic knowledge of SoulAdvisor’s practitioner community through training, workshops and individual consultations in order to support the health of these communities. The Healing on Country program is based on an understanding that healing in Australia is best informed by those who understand the intricate reciprocity between humanity and the rest of the natural world and that the health of one implies the necessary health of the other. For this reason, the program will therefore create employment opportunities and networks of common focus within the wellness industry inclusive of First Nation community members and the SoulAdvisor practitioner base. This program will create a leadership role for First Nations involvement in collaboration and co-designing ways to improve social, physical, mental and cultural wellbeing in local areas for all peoples. This will inform the practice of wellness modalities locally and provide inspiration and a framework of reciprocal healing between water, land, sea and skies and humans. Once successful, we aim to replicate the project in other Countries across Australia,