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About Us

Firstly the Townsville NAIDOC Committee would like to acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the Townsville Region. The Bindal and Wulgurukaba people, are the first known people to have lived in the Townsville region.

Welcome to Bindal and Wulgurukaba Land

The traditional custodians are the Bindal and Wulgurukaba people, and the language of the traditional custodians is the Birrigubba language. "Wadda Mooli" is Birrigubba language meaning greetings such as "hello, goodbye, or welcome". When Europeans first arrived in Townsville, they assumed that no one occupied or owned the land because there were no boundaries marked by fences and farms. But the Bindal and Wulgurukaba people had already been living here for many years—hundreds of generations. Archaeological sites near Townsville have been dated over 10,000 years ago.

The Bindal People

The Bindal people call their country Thul Garrie Waja.

An important symbol for the Bindal people is the shooting star. They believe that wherever the star fell or the direction the star fell there was either danger coming from that direction or someone from the direction was in need of help or in danger.

The Wulgurukaba People

The Wulgurukaba people call their country Gurrumbilbarra. Wulgurukaba means "canoe people". And important symbol for the Wulgurukaba people is the carpet snake. The creation story tells of the creation snake that comes down from the Herbert River (Ingham area), went outside to sea creating the Hinchinbrook channel and down to Palm and Magnetic Islands. His body broke up leaving parts along the coast. The tail of the snake is at Halifax Bay; his body is at Palm Island; and his head rests at Arcadia on Magnetic Island.

Welcome to Townsville text provided by the Townsville City Council. Welcome to Bindal and Wulgurukaba Land, The Bindal People and The Wulgurukaba People text and the intellectual property contained within the text is held with the named traditional owner groups and permission should be sought to reproduce this text.

Townsville NAIDOC Committee (TNC)

The Townsville NAIDOC Committee is a voluntary committee with a network of volunteers from various fields. The executive members are nominated and elected at the Townsville Community NAIDOC Meeting hosted by the previous Townsville NAIDOC Committee.

The executive committee coordinate meetings to engage and establish collaborative partnerships with network members to oversee the planning of events in the lead up to NAIDOC Week.

This year as a symbol in celebrating the 2024 national theme, the Townsville NAIDOC Committee will lead the coordination of events to celebrate local achievements.

Townsville NAIDOC Week

Townsville NAIDOC Week is about giving our local Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Community a chance to celebrate their culture and an opportunity to recognise and award those who contribute to our community in various fields.

The Townsville NAIDOC Committee planned six events in 2024.

  • The Official Launch of NAIDOC Week (Flag Raising & Community Breakfast)
  • Townsville NAIDOC Corporate Breakfast
  • Townsville NAIDOC March
  • Townsville NAIDOC DEADLY DAY OUT (Family Fun Day)
  • Townsville NAIDOC Dinner and Awards Night -Details yet to be confirmed
  • Townsville NAIDOC Elders Lunch - Details yet to be confirmed

We encourage the Townsville Community to participate at any of the NAIDOC events and help us celebrate NAIDOC in Style.

If you would like to sponsor any of the above mentioned events, we welcome all interest with tiered sponsorship packages to suit organisational requirements. For more information please contact us.

Townsville NAIDOC Week

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