The Nyikina Community in partnership with SharingStories has launched an important cultural resource – the Woonyoomboo: The Night Heron interactive display panel.  This interactive touch panel is permanently on display at Jarlmadangah Burru Aboriginal Community in the Kimberley, in Nyikina Country where the story takes place and gives the community permanent ongoing access to the story, animations, songs and videos telling the Woonyoomboo Creation Story. This interactive panel is one cultural resource from a suite of resources sharing the Nyikina Community’s Woonyoomboo story, including an animated film and a multi-touch book.

The Woonyoomboo Creation Story and songs were handed down from Darby Jayi-Kali Narngarin to his daughter Annie Nayina Milgin. The creation of this work was a journey that took place over several years. Groups of young Nyikina people explored Nyikina Country as part of the Digital Storytelling Program under the guidance of senior custodians, learning the stories and songs of Woonyoomboo: the Night Heron from the site of their creation.

The lead on the project, Nyikina Elder Annie Nayina Milgin, spoke about the importance of sharing knowledge with young people using new technologies. “We grew up with what old people gave us, passing on knowledge, but our old people didn’t know how to read and write. They usually used a message stick. That’s how we learnt. But now everything has changed, and it’s a modern way, and the old people are happy, happy about the way our kids are using technology and the way they are learning languages and stories so we can keep practising our culture.”