Queensland ethnobotanist wins Deadly award

Queensland ethnobotanist Gerry Turpin has won the National Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Award or Deadlys^® for his work with the Australian Tropical Herbarium in Cairns.

From the Queensland Department of Science, Information Technology, Innovation and the Arts, Mr Turpin won the award for his ground breaking work in the study of cultural plant use.

Science and Innovation Minister Ian Walker congratulated Mr Turpin on winning the Deadly award.

“Indigenous Australians have used plants for food, medicine, tools, utensils and weapons, for thousands of years, however, since the arrival of Europeans, a lot of traditional plant use knowledge has been lost,” Mr Walker said.

“Through the dedicated work of Mr Turpin and his initiative to establish and build the capacity of traditional owner groups in tropical Queensland to record and utilise Indigenous ethno-biological and ethno-ecological knowledge, that traditional plant use knowledge is being returned back to country.”

Mr Turpin is an elder of the Mbabaram people and has a degree in botany.

He played a big part in setting up the Tropical Indigenous Ethnobotany Centre which is a joint venture between Traditional Owners, James Cook University, CSIRO and the Queensland Government. 

Mr Walker said the Tropical Indigenous Ethnobotany Centre and the Indigenous Working Group of five Traditional Owners from various north Queensland groups provide direction, guidance and cultural protocols to ensure it becomes a leader in the protection of Indigenous intellectual property and recognition of Indigenous knowledge.

“The centre is unique in Australia and blends modern science with traditional knowledge by capturing what elders know about bush tucker, bush medicine and environmental sustainability and keeping it alive for future generations,” Mr Walker said.

“Mr Turpin’s work and the work of the Tropical Indigenous Ethnobotany Centre is positioning Queensland science and innovation at the forefront of traditional plant use knowledge in Australia and the world.”

[ENDS] 11 September 2013
Media contact:           Alex Bernard  0417 252 563