Great Walk Networking
Encyclopedia
Great Walk Networking is a bushwalking community in Western Australia
. The Great Walk started in 1988 as a protest walk from Denmark
to Parliament House
in Perth
, to raise awareness of logging
in Western Australia's old growth forest
s.
The organisation of the first Walk was also an Australian Bicentenary
celebration to appreciate the environment of Southwest Australia
, which is home to a relatively small but unique tall forest heritage: the world's only Eucalyptus marginata (Jarrah), E. diversicolor (karri), E. jacksonii
(Tingle), E. wandoo subsp. wandoo (Wandoo), E. patens
(Blackbutt) and E. gomphocephala
(Tuart) forests grow there.
The Western Australian forests have been extensively challenged by significant threats: earlier destruction due to settlement patterns and later clearfelling for woodchipping
, mining for mineral sands and bauxite, as well as forestry practices that showed little interest in long term sustainability.
Since 1988, different people have organized walks a few times each year. Most Walks are still organized with a focus on raising awareness of conservation and land use issues. Great Walk Networking is a non-profit voluntary organization.
(CSNF) and South West Forests Defence Foundation
(SWFDF) had been seeking to address the forestry and mining proposals for woodchipping and mining in the forests. The Manjimup
wood chip proposals of 1976-1977, and the Wagerup
mining proposals in the Darling Range consumed the energies of the CSNF and the SWFDF, as well as other groups based either at the Environment Centre of Western Australia or associated with the Conservation Council of Western Australia
. As the older groups changed due to resolution of some of the issues - subsequent groups like Great Walk Networking absorbed members from the earlier groups.
The Great Walk was launched with an Aboriginal dance ceremony to "protect the walkers, and attune them to the country through which they would travel." Over the next 26 days, over 1000 people would take part, ostensibly to express their appreciation and concerns for the environment. These expressions were felt to be conveyed by a document called the Great Walk Tree Charter, which was carried to Parliament House where it was presented to the Premier
of Western Australia, Mr. Peter Dowding
.
The Great Walk required a great deal of planning and coordination: the route had to mapped, checked and marked on the ground, support crews and equipment assembled, transport arranged, child-care, first aid and medical personnel coordinated and a mobile catering system put together, able to serve 200-500 people at a time. For the most part, sections of the Walk were co-ordinated 'tag-team' style, with new coordination teams assembled for sections of the Walk. During the 26 days from March to April 1988, the Great Walk formed an entirely self-supporting, mobile community of 200 to 500 people that supported itself on contributions from participating walkers per day.
' or 'message bearer' in the Nyoongah
language.
During the first Great Walk, a bambooroo was presented to the Walkers at a corroborree held in Kirup, Western Australia. Ken Colbung
described the bambooroo to the Walkers and supporters who collected at Parliament House on 20 April 1988 as a "spiritual message stick" that "protected (the Walkers) from the weather." He later said a message stick "has a very special spiritual significance for the messenger, and when we dedicated it at Kirup it then took all the hopes and realisations of the people present that they would have a walk that would not be caught up in the elements, so that rain would not flood them out or that mud would not be there, that the winds would not be too strong, but the elements would be very controlled and it'd allow the Walkers a peaceful walk up to Perth."
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
. The Great Walk started in 1988 as a protest walk from Denmark
Denmark, Western Australia
Denmark is a town in the Great Southern region of Western Australia, south-south-east of the state capital of Perth. At the 2006 census, Denmark had a population of 2,732.-History:...
to Parliament House
Parliament House, Perth
Parliament House, Perth is located on Harvest Terrace in Perth, Western Australia. An important building of the Government of Western Australia, it is the home of the Parliament of Western Australia, including the Western Australian Legislative Council and Western Australian Legislative Assembly...
in Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
, to raise awareness of logging
Logging
Logging is the cutting, skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or logs onto trucks.In forestry, the term logging is sometimes used in a narrow sense concerning the logistics of moving wood from the stump to somewhere outside the forest, usually a sawmill or a lumber yard...
in Western Australia's old growth forest
Old growth forest
An old-growth forest is a forest that has attained great age , and thereby exhibits unique ecological features. An old growth forest has also usually reached a climax community...
s.
The organisation of the first Walk was also an Australian Bicentenary
Australian Bicentenary
The bicentenary of Australia was celebrated in 1970 on the 200th anniversary of Captain James Cook landing and claiming the land, and again in 1988 to celebrate 200 years of permanent European settlement.-1970:...
celebration to appreciate the environment of Southwest Australia
Southwest Australia
Southwest Australia is a biodiversity hotspot that includes the Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub ecoregions of Western Australia. The region has a wet-winter, dry-summer Mediterranean climate, one of five such regions in the world...
, which is home to a relatively small but unique tall forest heritage: the world's only Eucalyptus marginata (Jarrah), E. diversicolor (karri), E. jacksonii
Eucalyptus jacksonii
The Red Tingle of south west Western Australia is one of the tallest trees in the state and can measure up to 24 metres round at the base and grow to a height of 75 metres and live for up to 400 years....
(Tingle), E. wandoo subsp. wandoo (Wandoo), E. patens
Eucalyptus patens
The eucalyptus tree Eucalyptus patens has been known as yarri, blackbutt, Swan River blackbutt and Western Australia blackbutt....
(Blackbutt) and E. gomphocephala
Eucalyptus gomphocephala
Eucalyptus gomphocephala is a species of tree, also known as Tuart, in the genus Eucalyptus. Native to the southwest of Western Australia the tree grows to over 35m tall. As a durable hardwood the timber is sought after for scantlings, structural timber, the construction of railway carriages, and...
(Tuart) forests grow there.
The Western Australian forests have been extensively challenged by significant threats: earlier destruction due to settlement patterns and later clearfelling for woodchipping
Woodchipping
Woodchipping is the act and industry of chipping wood for pulp, processed wood products, and mulch.-Papermaking:Timber is converted to woodchips and sold, primarily, for pulp production used in paper manufacture...
, mining for mineral sands and bauxite, as well as forestry practices that showed little interest in long term sustainability.
Since 1988, different people have organized walks a few times each year. Most Walks are still organized with a focus on raising awareness of conservation and land use issues. Great Walk Networking is a non-profit voluntary organization.
The Conservation Movement in Western Australia, 1970s - 1980s
Many of the Great Walk Networking participants had been involved with other organisations that formed before 1988 to address significant threats to South Western forests of Western Australia. As early as the mid 1970s the Campaign to Save Native ForestsCampaign to Save Native Forests
The Campaign to Save Native Forests was the name of a grassroots organisation which grew from a campaign started in Perth, Western Australia, in 1975, as a response to the development of a woodchipping industry in the south-west Jarrah and Karri forests of Western Australia...
(CSNF) and South West Forests Defence Foundation
South West Forests Defence Foundation
South West Forests Defence Foundation is a group that has been involved with three decades of involvement with the conservation of the Jarrah and Karri forests of the South West region of Western Australia....
(SWFDF) had been seeking to address the forestry and mining proposals for woodchipping and mining in the forests. The Manjimup
Manjimup, Western Australia
Manjimup is a town in Western Australia, south of the state capital, Perth. The town of Manjimup is a regional centre for the largest shire in the South West of Western Australia. At the 2006 census, Manjimup had a population of 4,239.-History:...
wood chip proposals of 1976-1977, and the Wagerup
Wagerup, Western Australia
Wagerup is a town located in the Peel region of Western Australia just off the South Western Highway, between Waroona and Harvey.-History:...
mining proposals in the Darling Range consumed the energies of the CSNF and the SWFDF, as well as other groups based either at the Environment Centre of Western Australia or associated with the Conservation Council of Western Australia
Conservation Council of Western Australia
The Conservation Council of Western Australia is the umbrella body for conservation groups and organisations in Western Australia. It has been the co-ordinator, publisher and guiding body for issues of woodchipping in the South West of Western Australia, the logging of old growth forests, as well...
. As the older groups changed due to resolution of some of the issues - subsequent groups like Great Walk Networking absorbed members from the earlier groups.
The Great Walk (20 March - 14 April 1988)
On 20 March 1988, 200 people set out from Denmark, on Western Australia's south coast, to walk through the forests of the State's south west on a 650 kilometre trek north to Perth.The Great Walk was launched with an Aboriginal dance ceremony to "protect the walkers, and attune them to the country through which they would travel." Over the next 26 days, over 1000 people would take part, ostensibly to express their appreciation and concerns for the environment. These expressions were felt to be conveyed by a document called the Great Walk Tree Charter, which was carried to Parliament House where it was presented to the Premier
Premier
Premier is a title for the head of government in some countries and states.-Examples by country:In many nations, "premier" is used interchangeably with "prime minister"...
of Western Australia, Mr. Peter Dowding
Peter Dowding
Peter McCallum Dowding SC was the 24th Premier of Western Australia, serving from 25 February 1988 until his resignation on 12 February 1990 after an internal party dispute....
.
The Great Walk required a great deal of planning and coordination: the route had to mapped, checked and marked on the ground, support crews and equipment assembled, transport arranged, child-care, first aid and medical personnel coordinated and a mobile catering system put together, able to serve 200-500 people at a time. For the most part, sections of the Walk were co-ordinated 'tag-team' style, with new coordination teams assembled for sections of the Walk. During the 26 days from March to April 1988, the Great Walk formed an entirely self-supporting, mobile community of 200 to 500 people that supported itself on contributions from participating walkers per day.
Bambooroo
Bambooroo was a magazine published by Great Walk Networking from May 1988 to May 1990. Its focus was on environmental issues of concern primarily to the South West region of Western Australia. Bambooroo means 'message stickMessage stick
A message stick is a form of communication traditionally used by Indigenous Australians. It is usually a solid piece of wood, around 20–30cm in length, etched with angular lines and dots....
' or 'message bearer' in the Nyoongah
Noongar
The Noongar are an indigenous Australian people who live in the south-west corner of Western Australia from Geraldton on the west coast to Esperance on the south coast...
language.
During the first Great Walk, a bambooroo was presented to the Walkers at a corroborree held in Kirup, Western Australia. Ken Colbung
Ken Colbung
Kenneth Desmond Colbung, AM, MBE , also known by his indigenous name Nundjan Djiridjarkan, was an Aboriginal Australian leader who became prominent in the 1960s. He was awarded an MBE and an AM for his service to the Aboriginal community.-Early life:Colbung was born on the Moore River Native...
described the bambooroo to the Walkers and supporters who collected at Parliament House on 20 April 1988 as a "spiritual message stick" that "protected (the Walkers) from the weather." He later said a message stick "has a very special spiritual significance for the messenger, and when we dedicated it at Kirup it then took all the hopes and realisations of the people present that they would have a walk that would not be caught up in the elements, so that rain would not flood them out or that mud would not be there, that the winds would not be too strong, but the elements would be very controlled and it'd allow the Walkers a peaceful walk up to Perth."
Further reading
- Bambooroo : Great Walk Networking. Fremantle, W.A. : Great Walk Networking, 1988-1990. ISSN: 1325-3328. Published from 2nd ed. (June 1988)- at: Denmark, W.A. . 1st ed. (May 1988)-no. 11 (May/June 1990) Later Title: Newsletter (Great Walk Networking Inc.) Record: State Library of Western Australia
- Newsletter / Great Walk Networking Inc. Denmark [W.A.] : Great Walk Networking Inc., 1991-1996. Record: State Library of Western Australia
- Newsletter / Great Walk News. Fremantle [W.A.] : Great Walk Networking Inc., 1996 – present. Record: State Library of Western Australia
- Worth, David John (2004) Reconciliation in the forest? : an exploration of the conflict over the logging of native forests in the south-west of Western Australia Thesis submitted to the Division of Science and Engineering. Thesis (Ph.D.)--Murdoch University, Western Australia Record: Murdoch University Theses Project
- Author Unknown (1998) "Walk for the environment...and heal the land." Nova (W.A.), March 1998, p. 15. Record: State Library of Western Australia
- Author Unknown (1998) Walk to heal land. Fremantle Gazette 13 March 1998, p. 5.
- McDonald, K. (1998) Walking tall. In: Today, The West Australian, 30 March 1998, pp. 7-8. Two-page photo essay on the Great Walk. (Photos by Mogens Johansen) See also: McDonald, K. (1998) At 70, Stan takes 700 km in his stride. The West Australian, 30 March 1998, p. 27.
- Jacobson, I. (1998) Walkers hope to save forests. Sunday Times, 15 March 1998, p.14.
- Boase, K. (1998) Cowan lectures Great Walkers. The Aboriginal Independent Newspaper, 18 March 1998, p. 5.