More than 300,000 tune in for ILF’s Indigenous Literacy Day celebration

Callan Morse Published September 12, 2023 at 3.30pm (AWST)

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The Indigenous Literacy Foundation's celebration of Indigenous Literacy Day was well supported by more than 300,000 virtual attendees. (Image: Wayne Quilliam)

Hundreds of thousands of participants joined the Indigenous Literacy Foundation in celebrating the 2023 Indigenous Literacy Day on Wednesday.

More than 300,000 participants joined the ILF's live stream from the Sydney Opera House in the annual celebration of the diversity of First Nations peoples' stories, cultures and languages.

The event included a 15-minute film, hosted by pop singer and proud Kuku Yalanji woman, Jessica Mauboy, taking attendees to Barunga in the Northern Territory, Rubibi (Broome) in north Western Australia and Weipa on the Cape York Peninsula in Queensland to learn new words in the traditional languages of Kriol, Yawuru and Thaynakwith.

ILF chief executive Ben Bowen said it was special for the Foundation to connect communities across the country through the virtual event.

"It's all about accessibility for us. The communities that we work in, 426 of them are remote. We can't get them all down to Sydney to do these things," Mr Bowen said.

"So, for us, to host something down here on Wangal/Eora Country, it's really important for us to be able to share that story back, and bring those stories back to homelands as well, so that they're all connected to the work that all the communities are working on as well."

The celebration also included ILF Ambassadors and event co-hosts, Justine Clarke and Gregg Dreise, performing alongside the event's special guests, eight Barunga children who had travelled from the Northern Territory town of Barunga, east of Katherine, a community of approximately 300 people where the main language spoken is Kriol.

*Gregg Dreise and Justine Clarke on stage with Barunga children. (Image: Wayne Quilliam)*

ILF ambassador Justine Clarke said she has enjoyed singing performing with the Barunga school kids since 2017.

"They speak and sing in multiple languages, including Kriol," Ms Clarke said.

"This song, Shordi Krik (Shorty Creek) is written by the children about their local creek where they play and fish."

Shordi Krik (Shorty Creek) has been turned into a book and included on the back cover of the book is a QR code to the song on digital streaming services.

During the event, ILF Ambassador Josh Pyke sung the 2023 Busking for Change song Words Make the World Go Around, celebrating with 147 schools around Australia who registered in the first year of ILF's new musical fundraiser.

So far the fundraiser has raised $63,192 of its $100,000 goal.

Mr Bowen said the Foundation couldn't be more pleased with the some 300,000 livestream attendees, surpassing the initial goal of 2000,000 viewers.

"The day showcased the rich and diverse stories, cultures and languages of First Nations peoples with three bilingual books created in Community," he said.

"There was lots of fun, singing and energy from the stars of the livestream, the Barunga Kids who spent a week in Sydney."

Many booksellers and publishers participated in the day by fundraising, watching the film and livestream and sharing it within their networks.

"We're so grateful for our ongoing relationships with booksellers and publishers," Mr Bowen said.

The event also saw a special announcement that the Busking for Change song for 2024 is Shordi Krik, written by the Barunga Kids with Justine Clarke.

An estimated total of 302 654 viewers participated in the event. New South Wales had the largest estimated number of viewers with 137 601, with strong participation from all Australian states and territories.