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With
the passing of each generation of Australian Aboriginal people,
cultural knowledge is endangered and in threat of being lost.
For the traditional owners of the Kimberley Region of northwest
Australia, cultural is bound up in the inter-relationships
between people, language, land (and sea), spirituality and
history.
Community-based information management systems can provide
the tools for Aboriginal people to access knowledge about
their living culture and cultural heritage. Access to knowledge
can empower communities to meet the challenges of self-determination,
land rights and healthy country.
Integrated (database, GIS, GPS and www) techniques are being
developed to manage knowledge-based systems. These systems
include cultural archives, art and artefact catalogues, plants
and animals surveys, traditional land use and occupancy maps
and language web sites.
The processes and challenges of implementing Aboriginal community-based
information management systems in the Kimberley are discussed.
A review of the nature and scope of such systems across the
region is presented along with examples of projects currently
being implemented.
Key words: community, integrated, Aboriginal, knowledge, endangered
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