• Lake Condah
• The Melbourne Museum
  

Lake Condah
Lake Condah is the site of a mission set up for Aborigines in 1867. Missions were designed to protect the Aborigines from negative Western influences such as alcohol. The indigenous people residing at the missions were not allowed to practice their own religion and had to follow a Christian way of life. In 1886 the law was changed and the term 'Aborigine' was redefined to exclude those of 'mixed blood'. Many people were forced to leave the missions and many closed or became very run down. Lake Condah was finally closed in 1919, but residents and ex residents campaigned continuously to have the land handed back to them. Finally, in the 1980's, part of the land was purchased and granted to the traditional owners who now organise tours of the area, giving visitors an insight into traditional ways of living and life on the mission. The tour includes sights such as the ruins of ancient bluestone huts, fish traps and traditional ovens, which have been dated to 8000 years old.

Participants of the International Perspectives on Peace and Reconciliation Conference may be interested in taking a trip to Lake Condah as part of the cultural experience of the conference. Lake Condah is situated on the Northwestern edge of Mt. Eccles National Park, 357km West of Melbourne. The journey takes around 7 hours, so people are advised to hire a car and take a few days for the trip.

The Melbourne Museum
The Melbourne Museum is situated in Carlton Gardens and next to the historic Royal Exhibition Building. It is an exciting and innovative attraction - including permanent and touring exhibitions, dynamic performances and events, cafés, IMAX Theatre, gift shop, and undercover parking. Bunjilaka is the Aboriginal Centre at Melbourne Museum and it aims to present, interpret and celebrate Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, philosophies and issues, with a focus on southeastern Australia.

Displays currently showing at Bunjilaka include; Koori Voices, which tells the stories of Aboriginal people in Australia and celebrates the survival of their culture, Belonging to Country, which describes aboriginal people's spiritual, economic and political relationship with the land, and Two Laws, which looks at the conflict between Indigenous and non-indigenous laws and perceptions.

The website address for the Museum is http://melbourne.museum.vic.gov.au/