Desert Tracks: Cleaning up the land

Desert Tracks is a good introduction to the philosophy of Indigenous people, and how total dependency upon land inspired a way of living that was also respectful. The land is spoken of in Desert Tracks as being alive, and in need of care.

Desert Tracks synopsis

A film that speaks about the Pitjantjatjara people’s efforts to preserve vital cultural information in order to care for land by turning to tourism.

Desert Tracks curator's notes

Desert Tracks documents the Pitjantjatjara people’s desire to retain their traditional culture. 'Desert Tracks’, a business initiated without government funding, is a community’s attempt to sustain itself culturally, and is an important initiative in the context of self-determination.

Episodic in structure, Desert Tracks is a great promotion for a community-driven initiative to achieve the cultural preservation of the Pitjantjatjara people. A genuine love of land, and the kindred relationship to it, is woven through this documentary, and the need to communicate the importance of land to tourists is done with patience and tenderness. The responsibility of caring for land is central to the business initiative undertaken by the Pitjantjatjara people, and to have this cultural perspective effectively communicated to and received by tourists is all part of the work of the Pitjantjatjara custodians. The outcome intended is that all folk share a common respect for the land and value the ecology equally.

Notes by Romaine Moreton

Education notes

This clip shows an Aboriginal Elder speaking in Pitjantjatjara accompanied by English subtitles. He talks about Dreamings of bush foods and of places such as rock holes and creeks, and how they were created. There is footage of a large mob of cattle being mustered. He explains that cattle pose a problem for the land and as a consequence the land is bare. He says that the Anangu would like to fence and restore the land, but without a vehicle such work is very difficult. Aboriginal artists are also shown making artefacts for tourists.

Educational value points

• Desert Tracks is a tourism business owned and operated by the Pitjantjatjara and Yankunytjatjara peoples. Tourism offers some Indigenous people the potential for employment and the opportunity to maintain cultural traditions while operating a viable business. However, the Elder in the clip talks about tensions between the benefits and the negative effects of tourism.

• Land management is a major issue for Aboriginal peoples in the Northern Territory who have regained some of their traditional lands. Some of these lands were previously held as pastoral leases and the soil has been degraded by the hard hooves of cattle compacting and damaging the soil, causing erosion.

• The Pitjantjatjara are the custodians of the country shown in this clip. Connection with the land or country is important to Aboriginal peoples. The land is regarded as a whole environment that sustains and is sustained by the people. The land shown is in the north-west of South Australia and includes a number of pastoral leases.

Education Notes provided by The Learning Federation and Education Services Australia