Everyday heritage in focus at ACT Region Heritage Symposium
GML was proud to support and attend the recent ACT Region Heritage Symposium, which brought together practitioners, researchers and community voices to explore how heritage is shared, shaped and sustained through everyday life.
Following a Welcome to Country by Ngunnawal woman Delephene Fraser and an opening address from ACT Minister for Heritage Chris Steel, the symposium explored the themes of ‘Conviviality, Creativity and Care’.
From family recipes and community archives to neighbourhood shop signs and shared meals, the program highlighted the many ways people connect with heritage in their everyday lives, and how seemingly ‘ordinary’ things help shape identity, memory and belonging.
Keynote speaker and social historian Dr Kate Bagnall of the University of Tasmania presented Family History for a Multicultural Australia, exploring family history as a form of everyday heritage practice that can be particularly meaningful for migrant and culturally diverse communities. Her presentation considered how family history research can strengthen connections to identity, culture and belonging.
Food and memory emerged as recurring themes throughout the symposium. In her keynote, Dr Madeline Shanahan reflected on everyday food rituals, family recipes and food memories as expressions of both personal and collective heritage and identity.
These themes were also explored by Dr Anna Wong, who discussed recipes from the archives of Mugga Mugga Cottage; Dr Bryan Levina Viray, who examined communal dining through the Filipino tradition of salo-salo; and Dr Bethaney Turner and Dr Naomi Zouwer, who explored community food growing in the ACT and the relationships between people and place.
Keynote speaker Ashley van den Heuvel of the University of Canberra reflected on how her personal collection of family stories and records informed her PhD research, exploring the connections between memory, identity and the past.
Several presentations considered how everyday heritage is recorded, interpreted and experienced in contemporary contexts, including Dr Anna Howe’s lively talk on suburban shops and their signage as everyday features that contribute to local identity and sense of place.
The symposium provided a valuable opportunity to connect with colleagues and community members, and to reflect on the many ways everyday places, practices and stories continue to shape how we understand and care for heritage.
