The Community Heritage Grant program supports local groups to access professional cultural heritage expertise. It provides funding for community organisations to understand the meaning and value of their collections and undertake conservation activities.
Preserving and Safeguarding Tranby's nationally significant Indigenous collections
Established in 1957, Tranby Aboriginal Co-operative limited (Tranby) is Australia's first and longest-running independent Indigenous education provider. Tranby has a strong history and community reputation for social action and political activism, particularly from the 1950s to the 1980s, which is documented in its rich archival, photographic and art collection.
'For 65 of 65,000 years, Tranby has been a central point of social action, self-determination and community connection for Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander peoples throughout Australia. Our incredible history speaks to the enduring civil rights movement in Australia.'
Tranby's first Community Heritage Grant, received in 2021, supported a Significance Assessment. This assessment confirmed that the collection is nationally significant, especially for Indigenous Australians. The organisation's second grant, received as part of the 2022 grant round, will enable them to take the next step in safeguarding their collection. The grant will enable a qualified conservator to undertake a Preservation Needs Assessment. This document will guide Tranby on how to best care for their valuable collection, particularly those fragile items that are at risk of degradation.
'As a not-for-profit Aboriginal community organisation, we are deeply grateful for this funding support towards maintaining and preserving our unique archival collection as a vital step towards sharing this important history with all Australians and upholding Aboriginal archival sovereignty.'
