Latest news with #Gomeroi
ABC News
10-07-2025
- ABC News
Coroner finds Indigenous man 'slipped or fell' into Narrabri Creek
A coronial inquest into the death of a First Nations man in northern NSW in 2021 has found he was likely drug-affected when he "slipped or fell" into a creek and drowned. WARNING: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised this story contains the name and image of a man who has died. They are used with the permission of his family. Nathan Markl, 31, was last seen alive on July 7, 2021, when he dropped a friend home in Narrabri. More than two weeks later his body was found in Narrabri Creek. In handing down her findings on Thursday, Deputy State Coroner Carmel Forbes said she was satisfied the Gomeroi man died by misadventure. "[Mr Markl] likely exited the car and entered the water, at or about 9:17pm, on the seventh of July," she said. "I am satisfied Mr Markl either slipped or fell into the Narrabri Creek and died. The inquest heard a police diving squad found Mr Markl's body 11 kilometres downstream from his vehicle July 23. Magistrate Forbes said wet weather at the time may have been a factor in his death. Police said his death was not suspicious. An autopsy was unable to establish the cause of death but found Mr Markl had no injuries. Leah Joy Murray, the pathologist who conducted the autopsy, told the inquest that the length of time Mr Markl's body was submerged in water made it difficult to determine the cause of his death. "The water clouds the ability to see bruises, scrapes and abrasions," she said. Dr Murray said there were no signs of fractures or disease that would have contributed to Mr Markl's death. "Anti-psychotic medication was found [in his system], as well as meth and alcohol," she said. The inquest heard Mr Markl had a cognitive impairment and struggled with substance abuse and mental health issues. "It's likely Mr Markl was abusing methamphetamine and cannabis," counsel assisting the coroner Ben Fogarty told the inquest. Witnesses told the inquest Mr Markl was heavily affected by drugs in the lead-up to his death. "He was on edge and I was wary of him," a witness said. During the two-day inquest in June the court heard Mr Markl was a father who loved his five children. The Gomeroi man was described as a "character" who had a special relationship with his mother, Jo Harradine. Ms Harradine told the inquest that her she feared her son would fall in with the wrong crowd due to his cognitive impairment. "It was hard for me as a mother," she said. Ms Harradine previously told the ABC she had long questioned the circumstances that led to Mr Markl's death. This week marks four years since her son went missing. The Gomeroi, Ngarrindjeri and Dunghutti woman declined to comment on the findings, but did say was not "likely to be the outcome I wanted".
The Advertiser
07-07-2025
- General
- The Advertiser
Two generations, one vision: shaping the future with respect for Aboriginal roots
IN order to move forward, Australia has to look back. As the country marks the 50th year of NAIDOC Week celebrations this week, the theme, 'The Next Generation: Strength, Vision and Legacy', speaks both to the future and the deep cultural roots that have guided Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people since time immemorial. They might be from different generations, but Gumilaroi man Bob Morgan and Gomeroi and Ngiyampaa man Jayden Kitchener-Waters share a determination to protect and pass on cultural knowledge, identity and purpose. University of Newcastle professor Dr Bob Morgan is a highly-respected Aboriginal educator and researcher who grew up on the western plains. "I guess the early years growing up in Walgett ... there was a part of me as a kid that didn't really fully understand what was happening in our community," he said. "As I grew older, I realised living in the shanties on the riverbank and being isolated from the white community, there was something totally wrong with what we were experiencing." Dr Morgan was 16 when the Freedom Riders came to town. University of Sydney students, led by the institution's first Aboriginal student, Charles Perkins, rode through regional NSW highlighting racial segregation and social injustice. The visit triggered something in Dr Morgan, a drive and determination to change conditions for Aboriginal people for the better. "I often look back and reflect on my early years, and even though we lived in very, very difficult circumstances and poverty, there was lots of happiness," he said. "We were surrounded by loved ones, our families, kinship structures and were people of the country and connected to the country." Dr Morgan said that connection to country is pivotal to his identity, just like the songlines, stories and cultural knowledge that were handed down by knowledge keepers and Elders in his community. He said NAIDOC Week is an opportunity to celebrate what it truly means to be part of the oldest surviving, continuous culture on the planet - but the work is far from over. "We've been really good at dealing with the symbols of reconciliation, but the structural and systemic changes and the societal changes that need to occur, it's still unfinished business," he said. Dr Morgan said the next generation will play a critical role in carrying the torch. "I'm so excited about some of the potential leaders that are emerging, not just through the academic system at universities, but those that are embedded in culture, practising culture and taking kids out on country," he said. "Leadership is so critical in this space, but it has to combine the wisdom of Elders and knowledge keepers and those young ones that are striving to be a part of the change. "So how do you connect those two critical elements of culture, is what stands before us." Jayden Kitchener-Waters is the next generation. Originally from Tamworth and now living in Newcastle, he's a senior policy and research officer with the NSW Aboriginal Languages Trust and a founding director of Gambadul Aboriginal Corporation. Mr Kitchener-Waters leads community consultations across the south coast, supports language revitalisation across the state and recently completed the 2025 NSW Parliament Young Aboriginal Leaders Program. He grew up in a family that was "culturally grounded" and said he has always been proud of his identity. "I always grew up dancing, being encouraged to speak language by my family," he said. "Statewide, there is obviously a massive loss of language, and I use the word 'lost' very lightly; these languages were stolen from us. "I was brought up with the cultural values of respect, humility and love; knowing my story, I'm able to share that with other people, share the truth of our culture." Mr Kitchener-Waters said this year's NAIDOC Week theme is about acknowledging the leadership and values of their ancestors. "Our old people were so staunch, but graceful and humble, and they stood up for what was right," he said. "I think this theme is about continuing that legacy and telling their stories with those values at the forefront." Both Dr Morgan and Mr Kitchener-Waters said truth-telling will be crucial to true reconciliation in Australia. "I think young people are now in a position to be sharing true stories about what happened to our people, and not doing that in a way that throws people off or makes people feel guilty and angry," Mr Kitchener-Waters said. "People were taken from their families, displaced, mass genocides. I think until we properly recognise that, then you can't move forward in reconciliation." Dr Morgan said Aboriginal people are not asking for anything more than others seem to "have as a birthright". "That goes to issues of meaninglessness, alienation and loss of culture and purpose, we can't do this work, the social and restorative justice work, without non-Indigenous people," he said. "I have really enjoyed that journey of walking with non-Indigenous people to bring about change and transformation." Both said valuable lessons could be learned from Australia's past, and from the cultural knowledge and ways of their ancestors. Mr Kitchener-Waters said the book The Dreaming Path by Paul Callaghan and Uncle Paul Gordon is a great place to start. "Those old values are still completely relevant and can help everyone in modern-day society," he said. "If everyone starts living with cultural values of respect, love and humility and looking after Mother Earth, I can see nothing but positive things for everyone if we live with those old values." The NAIDOC journey started as a movement for recognition and rights led by Indigenous communities who wanted a future built on justice and equality. Over the last five decades, it has grown into a national celebration of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. This year, Newcastle will host the first NAIDOC Community Awards for the region on August 2 at the Newcastle Entertainment Centre on Awabakal Country. On Monday, July 7, the Newcastle NAIDOC Community Festival will kick off at Civic Park from 9am with a welcome and flag raising before a march to Foreshore Park for entertainment, stalls, rides, food and drink. The event is free and runs from 10am to 2pm, featuring a main stage, Dreamtime Tent, dancing circle, Elders Tent, rides, a sensory zone and more. IN order to move forward, Australia has to look back. As the country marks the 50th year of NAIDOC Week celebrations this week, the theme, 'The Next Generation: Strength, Vision and Legacy', speaks both to the future and the deep cultural roots that have guided Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people since time immemorial. They might be from different generations, but Gumilaroi man Bob Morgan and Gomeroi and Ngiyampaa man Jayden Kitchener-Waters share a determination to protect and pass on cultural knowledge, identity and purpose. University of Newcastle professor Dr Bob Morgan is a highly-respected Aboriginal educator and researcher who grew up on the western plains. "I guess the early years growing up in Walgett ... there was a part of me as a kid that didn't really fully understand what was happening in our community," he said. "As I grew older, I realised living in the shanties on the riverbank and being isolated from the white community, there was something totally wrong with what we were experiencing." Dr Morgan was 16 when the Freedom Riders came to town. University of Sydney students, led by the institution's first Aboriginal student, Charles Perkins, rode through regional NSW highlighting racial segregation and social injustice. The visit triggered something in Dr Morgan, a drive and determination to change conditions for Aboriginal people for the better. "I often look back and reflect on my early years, and even though we lived in very, very difficult circumstances and poverty, there was lots of happiness," he said. "We were surrounded by loved ones, our families, kinship structures and were people of the country and connected to the country." Dr Morgan said that connection to country is pivotal to his identity, just like the songlines, stories and cultural knowledge that were handed down by knowledge keepers and Elders in his community. He said NAIDOC Week is an opportunity to celebrate what it truly means to be part of the oldest surviving, continuous culture on the planet - but the work is far from over. "We've been really good at dealing with the symbols of reconciliation, but the structural and systemic changes and the societal changes that need to occur, it's still unfinished business," he said. Dr Morgan said the next generation will play a critical role in carrying the torch. "I'm so excited about some of the potential leaders that are emerging, not just through the academic system at universities, but those that are embedded in culture, practising culture and taking kids out on country," he said. "Leadership is so critical in this space, but it has to combine the wisdom of Elders and knowledge keepers and those young ones that are striving to be a part of the change. "So how do you connect those two critical elements of culture, is what stands before us." Jayden Kitchener-Waters is the next generation. Originally from Tamworth and now living in Newcastle, he's a senior policy and research officer with the NSW Aboriginal Languages Trust and a founding director of Gambadul Aboriginal Corporation. Mr Kitchener-Waters leads community consultations across the south coast, supports language revitalisation across the state and recently completed the 2025 NSW Parliament Young Aboriginal Leaders Program. He grew up in a family that was "culturally grounded" and said he has always been proud of his identity. "I always grew up dancing, being encouraged to speak language by my family," he said. "Statewide, there is obviously a massive loss of language, and I use the word 'lost' very lightly; these languages were stolen from us. "I was brought up with the cultural values of respect, humility and love; knowing my story, I'm able to share that with other people, share the truth of our culture." Mr Kitchener-Waters said this year's NAIDOC Week theme is about acknowledging the leadership and values of their ancestors. "Our old people were so staunch, but graceful and humble, and they stood up for what was right," he said. "I think this theme is about continuing that legacy and telling their stories with those values at the forefront." Both Dr Morgan and Mr Kitchener-Waters said truth-telling will be crucial to true reconciliation in Australia. "I think young people are now in a position to be sharing true stories about what happened to our people, and not doing that in a way that throws people off or makes people feel guilty and angry," Mr Kitchener-Waters said. "People were taken from their families, displaced, mass genocides. I think until we properly recognise that, then you can't move forward in reconciliation." Dr Morgan said Aboriginal people are not asking for anything more than others seem to "have as a birthright". "That goes to issues of meaninglessness, alienation and loss of culture and purpose, we can't do this work, the social and restorative justice work, without non-Indigenous people," he said. "I have really enjoyed that journey of walking with non-Indigenous people to bring about change and transformation." Both said valuable lessons could be learned from Australia's past, and from the cultural knowledge and ways of their ancestors. Mr Kitchener-Waters said the book The Dreaming Path by Paul Callaghan and Uncle Paul Gordon is a great place to start. "Those old values are still completely relevant and can help everyone in modern-day society," he said. "If everyone starts living with cultural values of respect, love and humility and looking after Mother Earth, I can see nothing but positive things for everyone if we live with those old values." The NAIDOC journey started as a movement for recognition and rights led by Indigenous communities who wanted a future built on justice and equality. Over the last five decades, it has grown into a national celebration of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. This year, Newcastle will host the first NAIDOC Community Awards for the region on August 2 at the Newcastle Entertainment Centre on Awabakal Country. On Monday, July 7, the Newcastle NAIDOC Community Festival will kick off at Civic Park from 9am with a welcome and flag raising before a march to Foreshore Park for entertainment, stalls, rides, food and drink. The event is free and runs from 10am to 2pm, featuring a main stage, Dreamtime Tent, dancing circle, Elders Tent, rides, a sensory zone and more. IN order to move forward, Australia has to look back. As the country marks the 50th year of NAIDOC Week celebrations this week, the theme, 'The Next Generation: Strength, Vision and Legacy', speaks both to the future and the deep cultural roots that have guided Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people since time immemorial. They might be from different generations, but Gumilaroi man Bob Morgan and Gomeroi and Ngiyampaa man Jayden Kitchener-Waters share a determination to protect and pass on cultural knowledge, identity and purpose. University of Newcastle professor Dr Bob Morgan is a highly-respected Aboriginal educator and researcher who grew up on the western plains. "I guess the early years growing up in Walgett ... there was a part of me as a kid that didn't really fully understand what was happening in our community," he said. "As I grew older, I realised living in the shanties on the riverbank and being isolated from the white community, there was something totally wrong with what we were experiencing." Dr Morgan was 16 when the Freedom Riders came to town. University of Sydney students, led by the institution's first Aboriginal student, Charles Perkins, rode through regional NSW highlighting racial segregation and social injustice. The visit triggered something in Dr Morgan, a drive and determination to change conditions for Aboriginal people for the better. "I often look back and reflect on my early years, and even though we lived in very, very difficult circumstances and poverty, there was lots of happiness," he said. "We were surrounded by loved ones, our families, kinship structures and were people of the country and connected to the country." Dr Morgan said that connection to country is pivotal to his identity, just like the songlines, stories and cultural knowledge that were handed down by knowledge keepers and Elders in his community. He said NAIDOC Week is an opportunity to celebrate what it truly means to be part of the oldest surviving, continuous culture on the planet - but the work is far from over. "We've been really good at dealing with the symbols of reconciliation, but the structural and systemic changes and the societal changes that need to occur, it's still unfinished business," he said. Dr Morgan said the next generation will play a critical role in carrying the torch. "I'm so excited about some of the potential leaders that are emerging, not just through the academic system at universities, but those that are embedded in culture, practising culture and taking kids out on country," he said. "Leadership is so critical in this space, but it has to combine the wisdom of Elders and knowledge keepers and those young ones that are striving to be a part of the change. "So how do you connect those two critical elements of culture, is what stands before us." Jayden Kitchener-Waters is the next generation. Originally from Tamworth and now living in Newcastle, he's a senior policy and research officer with the NSW Aboriginal Languages Trust and a founding director of Gambadul Aboriginal Corporation. Mr Kitchener-Waters leads community consultations across the south coast, supports language revitalisation across the state and recently completed the 2025 NSW Parliament Young Aboriginal Leaders Program. He grew up in a family that was "culturally grounded" and said he has always been proud of his identity. "I always grew up dancing, being encouraged to speak language by my family," he said. "Statewide, there is obviously a massive loss of language, and I use the word 'lost' very lightly; these languages were stolen from us. "I was brought up with the cultural values of respect, humility and love; knowing my story, I'm able to share that with other people, share the truth of our culture." Mr Kitchener-Waters said this year's NAIDOC Week theme is about acknowledging the leadership and values of their ancestors. "Our old people were so staunch, but graceful and humble, and they stood up for what was right," he said. "I think this theme is about continuing that legacy and telling their stories with those values at the forefront." Both Dr Morgan and Mr Kitchener-Waters said truth-telling will be crucial to true reconciliation in Australia. "I think young people are now in a position to be sharing true stories about what happened to our people, and not doing that in a way that throws people off or makes people feel guilty and angry," Mr Kitchener-Waters said. "People were taken from their families, displaced, mass genocides. I think until we properly recognise that, then you can't move forward in reconciliation." Dr Morgan said Aboriginal people are not asking for anything more than others seem to "have as a birthright". "That goes to issues of meaninglessness, alienation and loss of culture and purpose, we can't do this work, the social and restorative justice work, without non-Indigenous people," he said. "I have really enjoyed that journey of walking with non-Indigenous people to bring about change and transformation." Both said valuable lessons could be learned from Australia's past, and from the cultural knowledge and ways of their ancestors. Mr Kitchener-Waters said the book The Dreaming Path by Paul Callaghan and Uncle Paul Gordon is a great place to start. "Those old values are still completely relevant and can help everyone in modern-day society," he said. "If everyone starts living with cultural values of respect, love and humility and looking after Mother Earth, I can see nothing but positive things for everyone if we live with those old values." The NAIDOC journey started as a movement for recognition and rights led by Indigenous communities who wanted a future built on justice and equality. Over the last five decades, it has grown into a national celebration of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. This year, Newcastle will host the first NAIDOC Community Awards for the region on August 2 at the Newcastle Entertainment Centre on Awabakal Country. On Monday, July 7, the Newcastle NAIDOC Community Festival will kick off at Civic Park from 9am with a welcome and flag raising before a march to Foreshore Park for entertainment, stalls, rides, food and drink. The event is free and runs from 10am to 2pm, featuring a main stage, Dreamtime Tent, dancing circle, Elders Tent, rides, a sensory zone and more. IN order to move forward, Australia has to look back. As the country marks the 50th year of NAIDOC Week celebrations this week, the theme, 'The Next Generation: Strength, Vision and Legacy', speaks both to the future and the deep cultural roots that have guided Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people since time immemorial. They might be from different generations, but Gumilaroi man Bob Morgan and Gomeroi and Ngiyampaa man Jayden Kitchener-Waters share a determination to protect and pass on cultural knowledge, identity and purpose. University of Newcastle professor Dr Bob Morgan is a highly-respected Aboriginal educator and researcher who grew up on the western plains. "I guess the early years growing up in Walgett ... there was a part of me as a kid that didn't really fully understand what was happening in our community," he said. "As I grew older, I realised living in the shanties on the riverbank and being isolated from the white community, there was something totally wrong with what we were experiencing." Dr Morgan was 16 when the Freedom Riders came to town. University of Sydney students, led by the institution's first Aboriginal student, Charles Perkins, rode through regional NSW highlighting racial segregation and social injustice. The visit triggered something in Dr Morgan, a drive and determination to change conditions for Aboriginal people for the better. "I often look back and reflect on my early years, and even though we lived in very, very difficult circumstances and poverty, there was lots of happiness," he said. "We were surrounded by loved ones, our families, kinship structures and were people of the country and connected to the country." Dr Morgan said that connection to country is pivotal to his identity, just like the songlines, stories and cultural knowledge that were handed down by knowledge keepers and Elders in his community. He said NAIDOC Week is an opportunity to celebrate what it truly means to be part of the oldest surviving, continuous culture on the planet - but the work is far from over. "We've been really good at dealing with the symbols of reconciliation, but the structural and systemic changes and the societal changes that need to occur, it's still unfinished business," he said. Dr Morgan said the next generation will play a critical role in carrying the torch. "I'm so excited about some of the potential leaders that are emerging, not just through the academic system at universities, but those that are embedded in culture, practising culture and taking kids out on country," he said. "Leadership is so critical in this space, but it has to combine the wisdom of Elders and knowledge keepers and those young ones that are striving to be a part of the change. "So how do you connect those two critical elements of culture, is what stands before us." Jayden Kitchener-Waters is the next generation. Originally from Tamworth and now living in Newcastle, he's a senior policy and research officer with the NSW Aboriginal Languages Trust and a founding director of Gambadul Aboriginal Corporation. Mr Kitchener-Waters leads community consultations across the south coast, supports language revitalisation across the state and recently completed the 2025 NSW Parliament Young Aboriginal Leaders Program. He grew up in a family that was "culturally grounded" and said he has always been proud of his identity. "I always grew up dancing, being encouraged to speak language by my family," he said. "Statewide, there is obviously a massive loss of language, and I use the word 'lost' very lightly; these languages were stolen from us. "I was brought up with the cultural values of respect, humility and love; knowing my story, I'm able to share that with other people, share the truth of our culture." Mr Kitchener-Waters said this year's NAIDOC Week theme is about acknowledging the leadership and values of their ancestors. "Our old people were so staunch, but graceful and humble, and they stood up for what was right," he said. "I think this theme is about continuing that legacy and telling their stories with those values at the forefront." Both Dr Morgan and Mr Kitchener-Waters said truth-telling will be crucial to true reconciliation in Australia. "I think young people are now in a position to be sharing true stories about what happened to our people, and not doing that in a way that throws people off or makes people feel guilty and angry," Mr Kitchener-Waters said. "People were taken from their families, displaced, mass genocides. I think until we properly recognise that, then you can't move forward in reconciliation." Dr Morgan said Aboriginal people are not asking for anything more than others seem to "have as a birthright". "That goes to issues of meaninglessness, alienation and loss of culture and purpose, we can't do this work, the social and restorative justice work, without non-Indigenous people," he said. "I have really enjoyed that journey of walking with non-Indigenous people to bring about change and transformation." Both said valuable lessons could be learned from Australia's past, and from the cultural knowledge and ways of their ancestors. Mr Kitchener-Waters said the book The Dreaming Path by Paul Callaghan and Uncle Paul Gordon is a great place to start. "Those old values are still completely relevant and can help everyone in modern-day society," he said. "If everyone starts living with cultural values of respect, love and humility and looking after Mother Earth, I can see nothing but positive things for everyone if we live with those old values." The NAIDOC journey started as a movement for recognition and rights led by Indigenous communities who wanted a future built on justice and equality. Over the last five decades, it has grown into a national celebration of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. This year, Newcastle will host the first NAIDOC Community Awards for the region on August 2 at the Newcastle Entertainment Centre on Awabakal Country. On Monday, July 7, the Newcastle NAIDOC Community Festival will kick off at Civic Park from 9am with a welcome and flag raising before a march to Foreshore Park for entertainment, stalls, rides, food and drink. The event is free and runs from 10am to 2pm, featuring a main stage, Dreamtime Tent, dancing circle, Elders Tent, rides, a sensory zone and more.
AU Financial Review
25-06-2025
- Business
- AU Financial Review
Santos' $3.6b Narrabri gas project hit with fresh lawsuit
Santos' $3.6 billion Narrabri gas development is facing new legal headaches after a key Indigenous group launched a fresh court appeal in its long-running attempt to block a project that is widely seen as critical to eastern Australia's energy security. The case, which was filed by the Gomeroi people of northern NSW on June 16, comes just a month after the Native Title Tribunal ruled that the project's importance to Australia's energy reliability outweighed potential environmental and cultural heritage concerns.
The Age
16-06-2025
- Science
- The Age
Inside Australia's oldest and coldest short-stay accommodation
Long before Blaxland, Wentworth and Lawson crossed NSW's Blue Mountains, First Nations peoples braved its frozen ground in the last ice age to socialise or trade. They would stop for a night or two and catch up with old friends, having climbed above the treeline and down gullies to seek cold comfort in a cathedral-like cave that archaeologists say is the oldest high mountain site continually occupied by humans in Australia. Australian research published in Nature Human Behaviour on Tuesday has found evidence that 20,000 years ago, groups of people stopped in the cave – Dargan Shelter near Lithgow, NSW – to warm up in front of a fire, make tools, discuss business or do some matchmaking on the way to a corroboree in the mountains. 'It was short-stay accommodation ... on the way to business,' said University of Sydney archaeologist, cave art specialist and Gomeroi man, Wayne Brennan. It's still being used that way today. Located on a private property not far from Lithgow, known as Hatters Hideout Cave and Lodge, the cave is sometimes rented to small groups of campers. Owner Mark O'Carrigan said: 'It's the original Airbnb.' The archaeological dig found evidence of human occupation from the Late Pleistocene (last ice age) to the recent past. This included 693 artefacts, and faded rock art including a stencil of a child-sized hand that is still visible. The findings upend conventional wisdom. Far from inhospitable glacial landscapes stopping First Nations people from travelling, as previously thought, global research has found people travelled and gathered in high-altitude sites (such as Dargan at 1073 metres elevation) where water would have been frozen for much of the year. The lead author of the paper, University of Sydney archaeology lecturer Dr Amy Mosig Way, said Dargan is a significant site. Funded by the Australian Museum Foundation, the research was initiated by Brennan and Way to bring archaeologists and Indigenous knowledge keepers together.
Sydney Morning Herald
16-06-2025
- Science
- Sydney Morning Herald
Inside Australia's oldest and coldest short-stay accommodation
Long before Blaxland, Wentworth and Lawson crossed NSW's Blue Mountains, First Nations peoples braved its frozen ground in the last ice age to socialise or trade. They would stop for a night or two and catch up with old friends, having climbed above the treeline and down gullies to seek cold comfort in a cathedral-like cave that archaeologists say is the oldest high mountain site continually occupied by humans in Australia. Australian research published in Nature Human Behaviour on Tuesday has found evidence that 20,000 years ago, groups of people stopped in the cave – Dargan Shelter near Lithgow, NSW – to warm up in front of a fire, make tools, discuss business or do some matchmaking on the way to a corroboree in the mountains. 'It was short-stay accommodation ... on the way to business,' said University of Sydney archaeologist, cave art specialist and Gomeroi man, Wayne Brennan. It's still being used that way today. Located on a private property not far from Lithgow, known as Hatters Hideout Cave and Lodge, the cave is sometimes rented to small groups of campers. Owner Mark O'Carrigan said: 'It's the original Airbnb.' The archaeological dig found evidence of human occupation from the Late Pleistocene (last ice age) to the recent past. This included 693 artefacts, and faded rock art including a stencil of a child-sized hand that is still visible. The findings upend conventional wisdom. Far from inhospitable glacial landscapes stopping First Nations people from travelling, as previously thought, global research has found people travelled and gathered in high-altitude sites (such as Dargan at 1073 metres elevation) where water would have been frozen for much of the year. The lead author of the paper, University of Sydney archaeology lecturer Dr Amy Mosig Way, said Dargan is a significant site. Funded by the Australian Museum Foundation, the research was initiated by Brennan and Way to bring archaeologists and Indigenous knowledge keepers together.
