Indigenous Guides Training Programme in Townsville – Making Use of Local Knowledge

In May this year, Townsville in North Queensland announced an indigenous guides training programme in connection with the first underwater museum in Australia, the Museum of Underwater Art. The programme was for indigenous trainees including the Bwgcolman people and Manbarra traditional owners with a passion for their culture and the environment; the full-time paid training programme spans eight weeks and will provide career pathways for participants when the museum’s next installation on Palm Island opens at the end of the year.

The unique Museum of Underwater Art already has a site at the John Brewer Reef and which those staying at properties like Oaks Townsville Gateway Suites can plan excursions to. Divers and snorkellers from such Townsville, Australia hotels exploring this site in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park can look forward to seeing the Coral Greenhouse, a mesmerising underwater art installation.