Since the late 1970s, anthropological, linguistic, historical, archaeological and legal research material has been generated in preparing claims under the Aboriginal Land Rights Act (Northern Territory) 1976 (Cth). Some is housed in the National Archives of Australia, but much of the supporting research and ‘backstory’ records are dispersed across the personal collections of those involved in the original research.
Many practitioners have culturally significant documents, photographs, audio and video recordings and other records. Claimants and practitioners also have memories that provide valuable data to establish the provenance of materials, informing the rich history of land claims in the Northern Territory. After 40 years, collections are in danger of becoming damaged and indecipherable.
In October 2019 AIATSIS and La Trobe University held a meeting of land claim researchers, including anthropologists, historians, linguists and lawyers, who have relevant archives, along with archivists and staff from the National Archives of Australia, the Northern and Central land councils, the Office of the Aboriginal Lands Commissioner and the Aboriginal Areas Protection
Authority. The focus group explored the value and the vulnerability of the records; issues around depositing and returning materials; questions of access, ownership, copyright and intellectual property rights; and the possibility of a distributed archive.
During 2020 we began a pilot study to develop a user-friendly do-it-yourself guide and template for collection holders to prepare their archives for depositing into collecting institutions and returning to Aboriginal communities. The guide and template will support the broad assessment of an archive, and discussions about potential deposits and returns.
Future phases will develop guidance on identifying, sorting, documenting, facilitating access and returning materials from the personal archives of those involved in land claim research, so that Aboriginal communities can access the records for generations to come.