TUCKED away and carefully planted in Creswick's Indigenous food and fibre garden are some species that have become critically endangered in the region.
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Katherine Lewisohn, from community advocacy group Transition Creswick, said the rarity of such plants was mostly to do with a lack of awareness. Ms Lewisohn said in healing the landscape, there needed to be greater shared understanding of the region's microclimates and native plants.
Creswick's Indigenous food and fibre garden is designed to be a starting point.
A smoking ceremony to start NAIDOC Week - the National Aboriginals and Islanders Day Observance Committee celebrating Australia's First Nations cultures - was held in the garden at Creswick Neighbourhood House to help draw more awareness to learnings.
The project has grown with community working bees, funding from Hepburn Shire, Wesley College students getting involved in research and planting and extra advice from Djaara foodie groups like Murnong Mammas.
What had been a dumping ground of sorts, covered in rubble, now features about 40 plant species that are native to Djaara Country.
Ms Lewisohn said it had been a steep learning curve, especially with such a wet spring, but the garden was progressing well.
"We hope more groups will start to get involved. We hoped this could be a place for the Djaara people and small events," Ms Lewisohn said.
"The plan is with more funding and community involvement that we might connect to the community garden beds and, if we can, fill around the pond area with native aquatic plants."
Decorating the fence nearby is an art piece crafted by the men's shed, painted by the playgroup and pieced together by a Creswick artist. The hope is with more funding and awareness, the art will also grow and take up more space on the fence by the garden.
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Moving into Crewick's Neighbourhood House, key rooms have been named in Djaara language: wartangu (coming together) for the programs room; nyakang nyernang (education) for the computer room; djakitj (food) for the shared kitchen; and, djimbayang (teaching/learning) is the library.
Creswick Neighbourhood House manager Chrissy Austin said these were small, but important steps towards reconciliation and sparking important conversations for people wanting to learn more.
Ms Austin said the hub was keen for greater input from the town's Indigenous community and traditional owners in taking the next steps and walking together to celebrate Djaara culture as a whole community.
Key to this has been working with Hepburn Shire and the connections the shire as a whole had been making with traditional owners on Dja Dja Wurrung Country.
Ripon MP Martha Haylett's electorate covers four different traditional lands.
Ms Haylett said there was a lot of work statewide to help bring people together and work with First Nations peoples to increase self-determination, such as moves towards Australia's first treaty in Victoria.
But what happens at a community level, such as in Creswick, is vital to the bigger picture.
"It is great to see locals pushing from the bottom-up to make a difference," Ms Haylett said.
"The NAIDOC theme, For our Elders, makes this such an important moment. We need to make sure First Nations elders can see progress in coming years. There are a lot of wrongs to make right."
NAIDOC Week celebrations continue about the region, including a Community Day at Ballarat Showgrounds on Wednesday. This event, hosted by Ballarat and District Aboriginal Cooperative, will include live music and hip hop dancing.
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