Journeys to Sugaropolis ...

Guest blogger:  Kevin Raines, Heritage Team Leader, City of Gold Coast. 

The exhibition Jouneys to Sugaropolis: the Australian South Sea Islander Story of the Gold Coast Region was launched on 20 August at the City of Gold Coast Administration Centre foyer, Bundall.  A casual and intimate affair, it began with the arrival of guests at the exhibition space, followed by morning tea in the Council boardroom and two very moving speeches delivered by Lesley Bryant, Adjunct Associate Professor in the School of Political Science and International Studies at The University of Queensland and Fiona Mount, Secretary of Tweed South Sea Islander Association.

Journeys to Sugaropolis is an historical exhibition that looks at the Australian South Sea Islander contribution to the development of the Gold Coast and adjacent parts of Logan and the Tweed.

This region was once referred to as Sugaropolis, where Australia's sugar industry began on the backs of indentured South Sea Islander labourers. The exhibition tells the important story of these people and their descendents, from the 1860s through to contemporary times. The exhibition is part of the Australian South Sea Islander 150 SEQ commemorations, which mark 150 years since the first arrival of indentured South Sea Islanders in South East Queensland.  The exhibition will remain until February 2014, and you can see the online publication on the Gold Coast City Council website.