Australia Indonesia Cultural Ambassadors Project 2016
Following on from the highly successful Cultural Ambassadors Project to Bali in 2015 a further series of events was presented during June-July 2016, as part of the Australian Ambassadors Project. Mark White, Producer of “The Rise of the Eco Warriors,” supported by Judy Shelley, National Coordinator of AIAA, was invited to tour Indonesia by Ade Zuchri National President of the Indonesian Green Union.
Mark toured from Jakarta to West Java, Sumatra and Kalimantan, presenting film screenings and Q and A sessions with Universities and venues to share the message of orangutan rescue and deforestation in Indonesia. He then travelled to Bali with Ade Zuchri to participate in the First Australia Indonesia Forum held in Klungkung and joined the other Australian Ambassadors Rendra Freestone, Kerensa Dewantoro and Carmencita Palermo and with AIAA support held further film screening and presentations at Bentara Budaya Denpasar, Made Budhiana Studio, Casa Luna Restaurant Ubud and the Institute of Art in Denpasar.
Kerensa Deantoro, Carmencita Palerma and Rendra Freestone visited Bali to present a wonderful series of performances and events including “Shakuntala “ performed at Bali Arts Centre and Bentara Budaya.
Byron Harmony Festival 2017
Byron Harmony Day was held on Sat 1 April and marked a very special event due to the very generous support and attendance of the Indonesian Consul General Bpk Yana Mulyana from Sydney who volunteered to provide a fantastic delegation of 26 performers and Consular visitors including Suara Indonesia Dancers from Sydney, angklung orchestra Adelindo from Adelaide and “Bedoyo Pager Bumi” the incredible troupe of 16 artists from Jogjakarta who presented the World Class production by Garin Nugoroho which was sponsored by the provincial government of Jogjakarta.
This magnificent performance was presented at Byron High School. A full program of events was planned to take place throughout the day at Main Beach Byron Bay. However due to the occurrence of the biggest floods in recent history, the daytime event planned for Main Beach Park had to be cancelled and against all odds the evening concert went ahead and was standing room only with many of the audience members flooding the stage after the show to personally thank the performers and the Consul General Bpk Yana Mulyana and his wife Irene Mulyana. Many audience members said it was “The best performance I have ever seen! “
Harmony Day was again coordinated by Judy Shelley with fantastic assistance from Dee Tipping assisted by John Lewis and the AIAA subcommittee- Byron Harmony Team and was a huge success for AIAA and the Nth Coast community special thanks to John Lewis for always being on hand to help out the AIAA events.
People who attended and participated were very appreciative to be involved in the Byron Harmony Day event and all performers generously volunteered their time. The Byron Harmony evening concert attracted the participation of about 30 performers, volunteers and workshop leaders and attracted an audience of approx 300.
Many thanks to coordinators Judy Shelley and Dee Tipping and many others in the Harmony Team for all their hard work. During the lead up to the Festival regular meetings were held with Yumiko Suzuki representing the Japanese community, Belle Arnold from Byron Council and the Migrant Settlement Officer from Vinnies Lismore.
KLUB Ngobrol @ Byron Services Club
During 2017 Judy Shelley initiated and presented the Klub Ngobrol at Byron Services Club Byron Bay as a way of supporting all local Indonesian speakers including Indonesian community, Indonesian language teachers, AIAA Board members such as Judy and John and local activists such as Claire Oelrichs from the Indonesian Endangered Species Fund. The Klub was held once a month in the free meeting rooms at the Byron Services Club and included many interesting and significant speakers and attendees from Indonesia.
Multicultural Nation Radio Show @ BayFm Community Radio
This year we continued with the successful radio show Suara Indonesia @ BayFm as part of the Multicultural Nation Radio Show which goes to air every Tuesday @ 1-2pm – the team includes Judy Shelley Main presenter, Malikeh Michels, the Japanese presenters Yumi, Hiromi and Rieko who present the Japanese Show every 4th week plus new presenter JT Rasta Samurai with “Smile Japan” every 2nd Tuesday. During June 2017 the Multicultural Nation Facebook Page was created to share multicultural news and info plus podcasts of the show created by the BayFM website www.bayfm.org
AIAA Office Space at the Byron Youth Activity Centre on Fridays
During 2017 discussions with the Byron Youth Service resulted in AIAA being allocated the use of the computer room at the Byron YAC to use every Friday for AIAA, Byron Multicultural group, Japanese community and any other ethnic groups to hold meetings and other activities. Regular weekly meetings including Penny May Settlement Officer from St Vinnies resulted in the establishment of an informal group called Byron Multicultural Network which is working towards greater access and resources for the local ethnic communities.
Many Thanks to the National Board
Many thanks to the wonderful National Board of AIAA Malia Ritaningsih, John Lewis, Judy Shelley, Vera Kos, Dharma Bradridge and Cynthia Webb for their many years of dedicated support for AIAA and Indonesian cultural exchange.
Thank you to our Sponsors 2016-17
The National Board of AIAA expresses sincere appreciation for the generous support of the Indonesian Consulate General Sydney, Bay FM Community Radio, Byron Shire Council, Elements Resort Byron Bay, Byron High School, SAE College, Lismore City Council, Crystal Castle, Senator Mehreen Faruqi and Senator Lee Riannon.