Pa la Nganduw Kedew – I Am Dingo Clan: Revitalising Language, Lore and Ancestral Memory Through Creative Practice

By Shaun Edwards | 8 December 2025

At the heart of Pa la Nganduw Kedew – I am Dingo Clan is a simple yet powerful truth: language carries law, memory, and responsibility. This practice-led creative research project is grounded in Kokoberrin language, Dingo clan identity, and ancestral knowledge systems from Cape York. It brings cultural governance, archival research, and creative practice together to explore how our oldest knowledges can live and breathe in contemporary form.

As a Kokoberrin man of the White Dingo clan from the Staaten River region, this work is deeply personal. I acknowledge my thangk—my ancestors—who shaped this Country through law, story, and relationship across countless generations. I also recognise that the lands where this research takes place are not simply sites of study; they are living cultural landscapes that hold responsibility, memory, and obligation.

This grounding in Country and community is not symbolic—it is central to the integrity of the project. Cultural safety, humility, and relational accountability guide how knowledge is accessed, interpreted, and shared.

From Archives to Ancestral Activation

White Dingo Messenger, Kokoberrin people. Illustrated by Shaun Edwards, 2025.

Since beginning my residency with the State Library of Queensland, the project has moved through a rigorous research phase that combines digital access with onsite archival investigation. Historical language records, early anthropological notes, ethnographic documentation, and regional oral histories relating to the Dingo and clan systems have shaped the foundation of this work.

A two-day induction at the State Library strengthened my archival literacy and provided culturally informed guidance on engaging with restricted and sensitive collections. It also reinforced the ethical weight of working with legacy records of Indigenous language and cultural knowledge—materials that were often collected without consent, context, or care.

One of the most significant milestones achieved so far has been the completion of a comprehensive annotated bibliography. This living research tool draws together linguistic sources, cultural and historical scholarship, regional ecological knowledge, and contemporary Indigenous research. Each source is critically assessed for relevance, cultural sensitivity, and creative potential. This bibliography now forms the backbone of the creative phase that follows.

Indigenous Research Sovereignty in Action

This project is grounded in practice-led Indigenous research methodology, guided by Indigenous standpoint theory, cultural governance, Elder accountability, Indigenous data sovereignty, and decolonising archival approaches. Rather than treating archives as neutral repositories, the project re-positions them through Kokoberrin law, language, and lived authority.

This approach actively challenges extractive traditions by returning interpretive power to community. Knowledge is not simply “used”—it is activated under cultural protocols, relational responsibility, and clan governance.

Entering the Creative Phase

With foundational research completed, the project has now transitioned into early creative development. Current explorations include:

Conceptual mapping of Dingo as messenger, protector, and law-holder
Structuring potential bilingual story forms
Investigating creative outputs (text, visual, and performative)
Integrating recovered Kokoberrin language into narrative sequencing

This shift marks an important turning point—from archival recovery to creative activation governed by Indigenous epistemology.

Why this project matters

Pa la Nganduw Kadew contributes across multiple layers:

Language revitalisation, supporting the continuity and contemporary use of Kokoberrin
Indigenous research sovereignty, modelling how community-governed research can operate within institutional spaces
Creative knowledge translation, demonstrating ethical ways of re-activating archival materials
Cultural governance scholarship, reinforcing the role of clan, totemic law, and relational accountability

The project aligns strongly with national and international priorities in Indigenous language protection, cultural resurgence, and decolonising research practice.

What comes next

The next phase will focus on expanded creative production, deeper language integration, cultural consultation where appropriate, and shaping final creative outputs for both public and academic audiences. Alongside this, reflective documentation will capture the process-led insights that emerge through making.

Shaun Edwards reviewing Station Collections, from Moor Moor, Delta Downs and the Moir Family photos, John Oxley Library in November 2025

At the midway point, Pa la Nganduw Kadew – I am Dingo Clan is on track and grounded in strong methodological, ethical, and cultural foundations. The archival research and annotated bibliography now provide a stable platform for advanced creative development. Most importantly, the project continues to honour the authority of Kokoberrin knowledge holders and the enduring law of the Dingo clan.

This work is not just about the past—it is about how ancestral knowledge continues to shape identity, responsibility, and creative futures.

Shaun Edwards (1)I am Dingo Clan (1)Kokoberrin people (1)Indigenous languages creative arts residency (10)First Nations languages (5)