Healthy country

Description

Join Professor Fletcher as he challenges assumptions about concepts such as Terra Nullius, 'pristine nature' and 'wilderness' which overlook and undermine Aboriginal influence on landscapes as negligible or destructive. Instead, he seeks to 'not only reintroduce cultural fire but transform the intellectual foundations of environmental science itself'.

The pathway to 'Healthy Country' therefore lies not only in changing practices, but in reconfiguring the relationship between people and the environments they inhabit. 

In this talk, Professor Fletcher argues that Australia’s catastrophic fires, biodiversity decline, and ecological instability are not simply climate problems. They are the outcome of a rupture in long-standing relationships between people and Country. For more than 65,000 years, Aboriginal peoples have actively constructed and maintained plant communities through fine-scale fire regimes, seasonal movement, hydrological manipulation, and reciprocal care. Country is not a passive backdrop, but a relational system maintained through ongoing practice.

Professor Michael-Shawn Fletcher

Michael-Shawn Fletcher is a Wiradjuri scholar and geographer whose research examines long-term relationships between people, plants and fire on the Australian continent. His work integrates Indigenous knowledge systems, ethnobotany and deep-time paleoecology to understand how cultural practice has shaped vegetation patterns for tens of thousands of years.

Image: Bushire, Kangaroo Island, 18 February 2021. Photographer Jeremy Piper. SLSA B 78536/3

FAQs

How do I get to the State Library by public transport?

The 'State Library, Art Gallery, Museum' tram-stop is just outside the State Library. There are bus stops close by, near the War Memorial on North Terrace. The closest train station is the Adelaide city station on North Terrace.

You can plan your journey via Adelaide Metro.

Is there car parking near the State Library?

The nearest car park is Wilson's Adelaide Central car park, 225 North Terrace, next to David Jones.

There is paid (metered) street parking along Kintore Ave and Victoria Drive.

Where is the wheelchair and stroller access?

Access to the Spence Wing first floor and the Mortlock Chamber is via the lift in the glass foyer entrance of the library.

There is on-street disabled parking available on the nearby roads. View more information and maps of Adelaide City Council's Disability parking for permit holders.

How do I check if the Mortlock Chamber is open when I plan to visit?

The Mortlock Chamber may close for private events, check our opening hours for any closure times.

When it is open you can visit the Mortlock Chamber on the ground floor to look at the exhibition bays.  The upper levels of the Mortlock Wing include  study areas.

Is there a cafe at the State Library?

Yes, the State Library Cafe is open Monday to Friday from 8am to 4pm and Saturdays from 12 to 4pm.

Find out more about the cafe and resident organisations at the State Library.