Creative Transformation - Day 2 - How to Practice First Nations First
Description
How can Indigenous knowledge reshape environmental leadership?
Join Narungga and Kaurna artist Jacob Boehme, Aunty Lynette Newchurch and producer Pippa Bailey as they share a journey to map First Nations protocols and rethink practice in response to growing climate catastrophe, loss of Country and culture.
How might our future be different if we were led by First Nations knowledge and protocols. This presentation and workshop is for artists, cultural workers, environmental workers and active citizens passionate to adapt their practice and learn how to put First Nations First.
Image: Guuranda by TJ Garvie
Lineup
Jacob Boehme
Jacob Boehme is an award-winning theatre maker, choreographer and cultural leader from the Narungga and Kaurna Nations of South Australia. Renowned for his bold, multidisciplinary practice, Jacob creates work that moves effortlessly across stage, screen, and large-scale public ceremonies—shaping some of Australia’s most iconic arts events and festivals. An alumnus of the Victorian College of the Arts (MA Playwriting, MA Puppetry) and NAISDA Dance College, Jacob’s career is defined by innovation and First Nations sovereignty in storytelling. As the founding Creative Director of YIRRAMBOI Festival, he received the 2018 Green Room Award for Curatorial Contribution to Contemporary and Experimental Arts, reshaping Australia’s creative landscape through a global First Nations lens. He has held key positions at major institutions including the National Institute of Dramatic Art (inaugural Lecturer, First Nations) and Carriageworks (inaugural Director, First Nations Programs). Jacob has helmed opening ceremonies for landmark national and international events—from Melbourne Festival and Cairns Indigenous Art Fair to FINA World Swimming Championships, the AFL and Cricket World Cup—bringing together ceremony, spectacle and contemporary First Nations storytelling at an unparalleled scale. His critically acclaimed solo work Blood on the Dance Floor earned the 2017 Green Room Award for Best Independent Production, while Wild Dog, commissioned by Tarnanthi at the Art Gallery of South Australia, received the 2023 Ruby Award for Outstanding Community Event or Project. A published writer and arts commentator, Jacob’s work appears in Witness Performance, The Australian and The Saturday Paper. He is an Australia Council Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Fellow and currently serves on the Art Gallery of South Australia First Nations Advisory Committee, Birraranga Film Festival, and The Festival Academy. Jacob is currently undertaking a PhD at Flinders University. Jacob’s practice continues to expand across continents through groundbreaking collaborations and large-scale creative exchanges—amplifying Narungga and Kaurna stories on stages around the world.
Aunty Lynette Newchurch
Aunty Lynette Newchurch is a Narungga artist living and working in Port Victoria on the Yorke Peninsula. Best known for her maireener-shell necklace making, Her artistic practice includes time spent collecting shells from beaches on Country around her home on the Yorke Peninsula. Aunty Lynette holds many Narungga stories and has worked closely with Jacob on mapping Narungga protocols and WILD DOG, GUURANDA and GUURANDA X.
Pippa Bailey
Pippa Bailey is an independent producer/director/consultant based on Wangal Land in Sydney. She started her career as a performer and reporter/producer with SBS TV, held leading creative roles in the UK, and has worked as Senior Producer with Performing Lines, Sydney Festival and in the First Nations team at Carriageworks. Pippa co-produces work with Narungga Kaurna leader Jacob Boehme and Kuku Yalanji artist Henrietta Baird, and is learning how to practice First Nations First. Pippa co-convenes the Cultural Gardeners - Arts Alliance for Climate Justice with CLIMARTE and advocates for the importance of arts and culture in addressing Ecological Crisis. She is Vice President of IETM International Performing Arts Network and slow travels the world, rehearsing a liveable future.
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