Bank Australia community customer grant recipient Nalderun has been changing the lives of young First Nations people for more than 15 years.

Last week a crowd of supporters and local community members celebrated the opening of a new cultural space at its Me-Mandook Galk Indigenous Education and Bush Tucker Place in Chewton, located on Djaara Country just outside the west central Victorian town of Castlemaine.

Uncle Rick's Community Shed in Chewton will be home to cultural workshops, artefact making, and healing and lies on the sprawling land that surrounds Me-Mandook Galk.

The private property was bought by local First Nations collective Nalderun Education Aboriginal Corporation in 2021.

With the support of 1200 people through a sole Kickstarter campaign, Nalderun had raised the funds required to establish a permanent home for its successful programs, and an expansive cultural space for the local Aboriginal community.

Under the guidance of Rick Nelson, a senior Djaara Elder, the site is home to Nalderun's Bush Tucker Place, co-managed by First Nations youth, with volunteers helping regenerate the land, plant bush tucker gardens and build Uncle Rick's Community Shed.

Nalderun's long-held dream for an Indigenous education and cultural hub as a base for its programs and community is now a reality, with an announcement the Me-Mandook Galk Indigenous Education Place would be built after an $850,000 grant from the Maldon & District Community Bank via its BIG Project regional community funding program.

The education centre's name is taken from a tree - Me-Mandook Galk - the sacred "grandmother tree" estimated to be more than 400 years of age.

Celebrations hit overdrive on Friday when Community Bank's investment was matched by the Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation.

"The Me-Mandook Galk Indigenous Education Place will provide a secure, culturally safe home for the Indigenous community on Djaara Country," ILSC group CEO Joe Morrison said.

"We are proud to work with Nalderun and support young people to connect with their culture and enjoy positive outcomes in education, wellbeing and employment.

"This investment will greatly impact the lives of Indigenous generations to come."

Nalderun is a Djaara word meaning 'all together' - with Nalderun currently embracing more than 150 First Nations school students across Djaara Country, running wrap-around educational programs and pathways from primary school to tertiary studies, as well as training and employment support to assist young mob thrive.

Support extends to Elders and families and via Nalderun's many partnerships with schools and TAFE institutions, enabling training, advocacy and curriculum which are heavily Indigenous-focused.

This year, Bank Australia was proud to support Nalderun's ongoing work through a community customer grant to help fund Nalderun's school programs, which embeds educational and personal support for First Nations students within different local learning environments.

A key ingredient to Nalderun's successful in-school programs is having a First Nations youth facilitator manage each one, bringing with them strong cultural knowledge.

Founded in 2009 on Djaara Country in the Upper Loddon and guided by Senior Elder Uncle Rick Nelson, Nalderun provides wrap-around holistic cultural education, wellbeing, and youth leadership programs which empower First Nations young people to learn, grow, and thrive.

The organisation also provides training, curriculum support, and advocacy to the broader community.

"Nalderun and the local Koorie community are really excited about this good news as we've been working for a number of years to get some money for the build," Nalderun chairman Uncle Nelson said

"We're very grateful that Community Bank Maldon District, on behalf of all who bank there, have stepped up to help us.

"This is going to set the precedent for a way forward for developing strong relationships between the Koorie community and the broader community."

Community Bank is owned by its customers, with nearly $4 million poured back into communities from Dunolly to Newstead, through Baringhup, Harcourt and Castlemaine.

"By doing your everyday banking with us, you're not just opening an account - you're helping fund BIG Projects that benefit the whole region," Community Bank Maldon & District

chair, Matt Gordon, said.

"We've been investing this way for a long time - because our communities are connected.

"Nalderun's programs already reach young people and families across this region, and this new Indigenous education space will help them do even more of that great work."

Nalderun CEO and proud Yorta Yorta woman, Kath Coff, said the realisation of a dream showed the power of community, culture, and collaboration.

"It demonstrates what is possible when we support each other and organisations in our region," she said.

"The new Indigenous education space will enable us to support First Nations youth grow up strong and proud, and to walk together as equals with local schools, organisations and community members."