Famous Indigenous Australians

• Bandler, Dr Faith
• Blair, Harold
• Bennelong
• Bonner, Neville
  [First Indigenous Senator]
• Burnum Burnum
  [Harry Penrith]
  [Advocate, activist]
• Dodson, Mick
  [Advocate, activist, representative]
• Dodson, Patrick
  [Activist, consultant, representative]
• Freeman, Cathy
  [Olympic athlete]
• Mabo, Eddie
• Mokare
  [Indigenous guide]
• Monks, Rosie Kunoth
  [Film star, nun, social worker]
• Morgan, Sally
• Namatjira, Albert

• Nicholls, Sir Doug
  [First Indigenous State Governor]
• Noonuccal, Oodgeroo
  [Kath Walker]
• O’Shane, Pat
• Pearson, Noel
  [Lawyer, activist]
• Pemulwuy
• Perkins, Charles
  [Activist, sportsman]
• Ridgeway, Aden
• Saunders, Captain Reginald
  [First Indigenous commissioned army officer]
• Smith, Shirley
  [‘Mum Shirl’]
• Truganini
• Unaipon, David
• Yagan
• Yindi, Yothu
• Yunupingu, Mandaway

Famous Australians

Note :
Many of the following were neither born in Australia nor, indeed, lived in Australia. However, they are all linked to the development of Australia in some way.

Banks, Sir Joseph Naturalist, explorer Barton, Sir Edmund First Prime Minister Bird, Nancy Aviator Bragg, Sir William Henry [& Sir William Laurence] [Xray Crystallography] Nobel Laureates Bradman, Sir Donald Cricketer Burnet, Sir Frank Macfarlane [Medicine] Nobel Laureate Chang, Victor Heart surgeon Chifley, Joseph Benedict Prime Minister Chisholm, Caroline Social work with women in early New South Wales Clarke, Marcus Writer [scroll down to information] Cook, Captain James Navigator, explorer Cornforth, John Warcup [Chemistry] Nobel Laureate Cowan, Edith Magistrate, First Female Australian Parliamentarian, Welfare worker Curtin, John WW II Prime Minister Cuthbert, Betty Olympic Athlete Dixon, Sir Owen Jurist, Diplomat Doherty, Peter Charles [Medicine] Nobel Laureate Dorrington, Annie Australian flag designer [shared] Dunlop, Sir Edward ‘Weary’ Surgeon, POW [WW II] Eccles, John Carew [Medicine] Nobel Laureate Evatt, Dr Herbert Vere First President of the United Nations Everage, Dame Edna Show business personality Farrer, William Agriculture [wheat development] Flinders, Matthew Circumnavigated and named Australia. Also access archival material at Matthew Flinders Florey, Sir Howard Science/medicine [penicillin], Nobel Laureate Flynn, The Rev. Doctor John Founded The Flying Doctor Service Fraser, Dawn Olympic swimmer Frazer, Ian Immunologist, Florey Medal winner, Australian of the Year Grainger, George Percy Musician & Composer Greer, Germaine Feminist Hargrave, Lawrence Flight, box kites Helpmann, Sir Robert Ballet dancer and director Hinkler, Bert Aviator; first to fly solo England/Australia Hollows, Fred Humanitarian, eye surgery in the Third World as well as Australia Hughes, William Morris WW I Prime Minister

Hurley, Frank Photographer [Antarctic/WW I] Katz, Sir Bernard [Medicine] Nobel Laureate Kelly, Edward [Ned] Bushranger Kenny, Elizabeth Nurse [polio] Kingsford-Smith, Sir Charles Aviator; first to fly US/Australia Lalor, Peter Rebel [Eureka Stockade], politician Lawson, Henry Writer and poet Lindsay, Norman Alfred William Artist & writer Lyons, Dame Enid First female Federal politician Macarthur, Elizabeth ‘Mother’ of the Australian sheep industry Macarthur, John Early agriculturalist Macquarie, Lachlan New South Wales Governor, early 1800s Mawson, Sir Douglas Antarctic explorer Melba, Dame Nellie Opera singer, soprano Menzies, Sir Robert Longest serving Australian Prime Minister Mort, Thomas Sutcliffe Refrigerated transport Murdoch, Rupert Media owner Nolan, Sydney Artist [Ned Kelly series] O’Connor, Charles Yelverton Engineer, Public Servant, Railways Commissioner [WA] Oliphant, Sir Mark Physicist Parkes, Sir Henry ‘Father of Federation’ Paterson, Andrew Barton Writer and poet [Waltzing Matilda] Phillip, Arthur First Governor of New South Wales colony Prokhorov, Aleksandr Mikhailovich [Physics] Nobel Laureate Ruse, James Convict and farmer Sturt, Charles Early explorer Stuart, John McDouall Explorer; North/South crossing of Australia Sutherland, Dame Joan Opera singer, soprano Thomas, Andrew Astronaut Thorpe, Ian Olympic swimmer Tao, Terrence [Mathematics] Fields Medal Trumper, Victor Cricketer Tucker, Albert Artist Wentworth, William Charles Explorer, politician White, Patrick Writer, Nobel Laureate

Harmony Day at AMES

Yesterday, we had a really wonderful day together to celebrate our diversity.

On Harmony Day, let's...

Honour our tradition of a fair go
Appreciate the benefits of our culture diversity
Respect each other
Mark the day with a celebration of
Our successes as a vibrant, cohesive, incusive
Nation and wear this badge, along with
Your fallow Australians to show that

EVERYONE BELONGS

By: Misshaudau

Aussie Ladette to Lady

Watch the video here

Ladette Nicole's exit interview

Q: Have you become a lady?
A: I'd like to think yes.

Q: Tell us about the other ladettes. Were there any clashes/fights in the house?
A: There were a few fights. I clashed with a few girls, but always made friends afterwards. Just what you would typically find when you put eight girls together. There was always bitching but we were always friends as well.

Q: Tell us about your biggest ladette moment at Eggleston Hall?
A: Probably, when someone grabbed my legs underneath the rug when we were playing the midnight chase, and I wanted to fight whoever it was that had me. I think that was my worst time. And I think once I had seen how bad I was, I slowed down after that. That was a good nudge for me.

Q: Did you get homesick?
A: Definitely. Very homesick. Just being in a completely different atmosphere, it was so different there.

Q: What was the hardest challenge that you had to undertake?
A: All challenges where hard. Hard to say which one would have been the hardest. The masked ball was tough, because I was set to host that with just one other girl. We had to do it in quite a short time.

Q: Do you think you gave it your best shot?
A: Yes, I'd say so. I probably could have done a bit better, but I gave it my best.

Q: Did you change as a person?
A: Definitely. I have a lot more self-respect and self-confidence now, which is good. I notice a lot of little things are different, which is good. Like, it's all in a good way.

Q: Was your time at Eggleston Hall what you expected?
A: No, it was more than what I expected, for sure. I wasn't expecting it to be as hard as it was. Very full-on.

Q: Are the tutors as mean as they come across on TV?
A: Yes. Yes. There are things that I did back then that I could never picture myself doing now, which would be a big shock to watch. They have got a lot of footage of me at my old job, just behaving in a way that I wouldn't like to behave now.

Q: Who do you think will win?
A: Sarah. I had my money on her really badly. She changed the most. She had never worn makeup or dresses, or anything like that. It was only the fourth weekend, and she had already completely changed to a different person. She enjoyed putting on makeup and dresses, and it was just amazing to see what she had accomplished. I really thought she would win it for sure.

View Ladette Nicole's Profile.
View Ladette Nicole's Picture Diary.
View Ladette Nicole's Pics.

Your say: Do you think Nicole deserved to win the show? Have your say by leaving a comment below.

Harmony Day

About Harmony Day

Harmony Day is celebrated on 21 March each year.

It is managed by the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) and celebrates the cohesive and inclusive nature of our nation and promotes the benefits of cultural diversity.

DIAC supports a range of community events and activities held to celebrate Harmony Day by providing free promotional products.

The key message of Harmony Day is Everyone Belongs. It's about community participation, inclusiveness, respect and a sense of belonging for everyone.

Since Harmony Day began ten years ago, thousands of schools, community groups and organisations across Australia have hosted Harmony Day events.

There is no limit to the range of activities that can be held for Harmony Day and we encourage schools, community groups, local government and businesses to get involved and actively support this day of celebration.

Things to remember when planning your event

These are some of the things you may want to consider when planning your Harmony Day event.

• Who is your intended audience?
• How can you best involve them?
• What will they get out of this event?
• What message do you want them to take away from the event?
• How will you let them know what's on?

Creative ideas for your Harmony Day celebrations

There are many ways that you can celebrate Harmony Day. It just depends on how you want to bring people together in your school, community or organisation.

What do you want to do that celebrates the vibrant cultures, races and religions that make up Australian society?

Some favourite activities are:

• Sport, dancing and eating - play world sports together and involve everyone, learn new dances from countries across the world, or enjoy the foods of different cultures
• Arts and crafts - use your creative abilities to make something that symbolises the different cultures of your local community. You could even hold a poster or art competition.
• Music and sounds - apply your musical talents to reflect your experience of different cultures or traditions. Rhyme and rap to a story about culture and experience. You could hold a concert for everyone to enjoy.
• Talk it up - meet someone new from your class, school or community and learn about their culture. Do an oral history project by interviewing someone from a different country and share it with others. You could write, record or even film the interview.
• Listen and learn - invite someone who has migrated to Australia to come and share their story and culture with your class. You could even research more information about their story or write about your own.

Moomba history

In 2005, Melbourne’s Moomba Waterfest turned 50. Since it’s establishment in 1955, the festival has become something of an institution, unfolding in the city’s parks, along the streets and on the waters of the Yarra River. The festival is as familiar to post-war Melbourne as the AFL and the Melbourne Cup have been for more then a century. Moomba has touched the lives of millions.

One of the largest and longest running festivals in Australia, Moomba has survived in spite of its critics, and it commands a strong place in the social history of the city.

Moomba has always sought community involvement. In early festivals, post-war migrants typically displayed their ethnicity through traditional costume and performance and in the mid 60s, with a turn towards a more arts-orientated program, Aboriginal, Jewish, Italian and Latvian arts featured prominently. Multiculturalism has been widely accepted since the early 1990s, and from this period particularly cultural diversity has been well represented in Moomba.

For a comprehensive insight into the changing face of Moomba download the commemorative 50 year celebration Moomba History Document, ‘Moomba - A Festival for the People’.

Moomba - A Festival for the People (3.32MB) Please note: this is a large file and will take a considerable amount of time to download over a standard modem connection.

Moomba

Moomba is an annual festival in the city of Melbourne, Australia and one of the largest and longest running festivals in Australia. Moomba is celebrated during the Labour Day long weekend (over four days, from Friday to the second Monday in March), and has been celebrated since 1955. In 2003, the event was renamed Melbourne Moomba Waterfest. It is a family festival run by the City of Melbourne Council.

Origins

In 1951, Australia celebrated fifty years of Federation with a parade and the staging of the theatre production "An Aboriginal Moomba: Out of the Dark". The following year, the final Labour Day procession was held in Melbourne. In 1954, Queen Elizabeth II visited the city in her first appearance as reigning monarch and the City Development Association and the Melbourne City Council proposed the Moomba Festival. The first festival was officially opened in 1955.

Events

Parade and floats

Moomba procession, 1955

Floats through the streets of Melbourne have been a key part of the Moomba festival since its beginning. The floats have an annual theme, usually an elaboration on "Let's get together and have fun", the avowed mission and vision statement of Moomba. The floats are usually from sister cities (of which Melbourne has six), schools and community groups. They also promote some aspect of the arts, like singing, dancing, or design. Swanston Street is the traditional home of the floats and spine of the city and horse or tractor-draw-floats use the tram tracks. Decorated trams are sometimes also featured.

The first Moomba parade was televised in 1957, the year after the Melbourne 1956 Olympics.

In 2001, the floats came under controversy when some contained representations of nude people.

Moomba monarchs

"The Moomba monarchy has been one of the most celebrated and controversial components of the festival over the years."^[1]

1. Queen of Moomba (1955-1987) from Beverley Stewart to Marita Jones.^[2] Won by a beauty pageant competition.
2. Queen of the Pacific (1967-1977) from Betty Lim Saw Yim (as Princess of Malaysia) to Lei Maa (Princess of Hawaii).^[2]
3. King of Moomba (1967-1987): British actor Robert Morley (1967), British actor Alfred Marks (1968), Italian opera singer Tito Gobbi (1969), featherweight boxing champion Johnny Famechon (1970), Russian clown Oleg Popov (1971), pop singer Johnny Farnham (1972) with Collingwood footballer Lou Richards as his Jester, indigenous Pastor Sir Douglas Nicholls (1973), ballet dancer Sir Robert Helpmann (1974), entertainer Rolf Harris (1975), entertainer Barry Crocker (1976), Disney character Mickey Mouse as King of Moomba and TV Personality Ugly Dave Gray as a Jester (1977), first Melbourne born king, entertainer Bert Newton (1978), entertainer Graham Kennedy (1979), TV actor Paul Cronin (1980), Richards again but this time as King (1981), film, TV and stage actor Frank Thring (1982), TV Personality Daryl Somers (1983), footballer Kevin Bartlett (1984), TV Personality Ian "Molly" Meldrum (1985), motor racing driver Peter Brock (1986) and champion doubles tennis player Paul McNamee (1987).^[1] Another source lists Gobbi (1968), Marks (1969) and Richards as Jester (1971).^[2]
4. Moomba Monarch (1988-1999): Jo Pearson, Con the Fruiterer, David Hanison, Tony Shaw, Don Dunstan, The Oarsome Foursome, Andrew Gaze, Cathy Freeman, Marina Prior, Lano and Woodley, and Denise Drysdale.^[2]Female Monarchs were also called Queen of Moomba and male Monarchs were called King of Moomba. In 1999 the tradition ended when clowns Zig and Zag were appointed. After it was revealed that, years before, Zig alias John Perry had pleaded guilty to child molestation they were dethroned.
5. Young Ambassador (2003-present): Carrie Stoney, Sam Quinn, Alan Wu, Natalie Bassingthwaighte.^[2] 2007: Trisha Broadbridge.^[3]

Fireworks

Fireworks are a big part of the Moomba festival and large displays occur on the opening and closing nights of the festival.

Carnival

A traditional carnival including Ferris wheel are held in the Alexandra Gardens along the river bank. In recent years, the carnival has extended to Birrarung Marr across the river. It is popular with children, and dagwood dogs and doughnut stands line the paths.

Bands

Moomba's performers have included acts such as ABBA, Neil Diamond and AC/DC.

River activities

Moomba is somewhat a paradox in that it celebrates the Yarra River, a river that has been much maligned in the history of the city until the last few decades.

Waterskiing

Water skiing in the Yarra was introduced to Moomba in 1961.

River Floats

The festival has featured Chinese Dragon Boats and the Moomba Showboat.

Birdman rally

Among the more popular Birdmen event, the Birdman Rally, which traditionally adds colour to the festival and is traditionally held at the Swan Street bridge, a location that also featured in the 2006 Commonwealth Games Opening Ceremony as part of the Queens Baton Relay.

Beginning in 1976, the infamous Birdman event has been run on and off during Moomba's history.

More recently the event was stopped due to high levels of ecoli contamination of the Yarra.

2004 saw the return of the famous Birdman Rally to Melbourne Docklands.

Subsequent cleanups reduced pollution to acceptable levels and in 2005, the rally was held close to its traditional location in the new inner city park, Birrarung Marr.