Bill Gammage's The Biggest Estate on Earth: How Aborigines Made Australia

This one day professional update explores the many issues and challenges raised by historian, Bill Gammage, in his recently-released book, The Biggest Estate on Earth. How Aborigines made Australia. In 2011-12, the book won several prizes for history and literature.

Drawing on a vast amount of visual and written records, Bill Gammage pieces together details of land management strategies from around Australia, arguing that Aboriginal people managed the land in a far more complete, systematic and scientific way than has often been recognised. He explodes the myths that Aboriginal people were careless nomads and that the pre-colonial ecology was purely ’natural’.

A range of speakers from different perspectives will explore the evidence behind this research and how his ideas might influence public thinking and land management in Australia in the future. This includes critical perspectives on fire management, species diversity and Aboriginal expertise.

Date: Monday 18 March 2013

Venue: Theatrette, Sir Roland Wilson Building 120, The Australian National University

Time: 9am-5pm

Cost: The event cost is $110 per person or $88 per student including GST.

Register and pay:http://ippha.anu.edu.au/events
 

This one day professional update explores the many issues and challenges raised by historian, Bill Gammage, in his recently-released book, The Biggest Estate on Earth. How Aborigines made Australia. In 2011-12, the book won several prizes for history and literature.

Drawing on a vast amount of visual and written records, Bill Gammage pieces together details of land management strategies from around Australia, arguing that Aboriginal people managed the land in a far more complete, systematic and scientific way than has often been recognised. He explodes the myths that Aboriginal people were careless nomads and that the pre-colonial ecology was purely ’natural’.