Perth Voice Interactive

MORE Noongar culture is coming to Northbridge this weekend, at least virtually.

Perth film production company Periscope Pictures has crafted a virtual reality experience “Virtual Whadjuk,” sending a viewer back in time to see the natural landscape along the Derbal Yerrigan (Swan River) and interact with the original people.

It builds off a concept by “indigenous digital heritage” specialist Brett Leavy, a Kooma man from south-west Queensland who developed the technique of using technology to strip away the urban landscape and present indigenous cultures.

For added local authenticity, Periscope brought in Whadjuk leader Barry McGuire, an ancestor of Yagan, and Vivienne ‘Binyarn’ Hansen, a Balladong Whadjuk expert on traditional medicine.

Viewers watch a smoking ceremony, are Welcomed to Country, and then see the moment European ships arrive, and a wireframe of the current cityscape shows the buildings that went up over the next 190 years.

The project won a $31,000 arts grant from Perth council in November last year, being recognised for celebrating Aboriginal culture and bringing in Aboriginal people to put it together (that gave it so many extra credit points it scored 36 out of 35 on the council’s assessment of grant-worthy ideas).

Virtual Whadjuk had its first run at Yagan Square in July and is now back at the Northbridge Piazza (corner James and Lake Street) from September 28 to 30, 10am to 2pm, and it’s free.

There might be more screenings coming up, with dates to be added at virtualwhadjuk.com.au

by DAVID BELL

A BAYSWATER councillor who booked a $3542 training course that starts just two weeks before council elections says she’ll repay the money if she’s not re-elected.

Catherine Ehrhardt dipped into her $15,000 councillor training allowance to book into the Australian Institution of Company Directors’ three-day Foundations of Directorship Certificate, which is being held in Perth starting October 3, saying it would make her a better councillor.

The course actually runs beyond her current term, with two classes on October 31 and November 28, but Cr Ehrhardt said before booking in she discussed reimbursing the city with CEO Andrew Brien if she was unsuccessful at the election.

Cr Ehrhardt said she even raised the need to tighten the policy to prevent unscrupulous councillors skilling themselves up at the end of their terms, only to scarper with no benefit to the ratepayer.

Abusing

“Whilst I hold myself to a high standard of integrity, there’s nothing to stop other people from abusing this policy,” Cr Ehrhardt told the Voice.

Some of the training paid for by the council in the past two years included:

• $1250 each for “project media training” for mayor Dan Bull and deputy mayor Chris Cornish in February 2018;

• $1869 in airfare and accommodation plus a $2595 ticket for Cr Sally Palmer to attend Melbourne’s “2nd Applying Artificial Intelligence and Deep Learning for Enterprises Conference” in May this year;

• $7235 for former councillor Brent Fleeton to attend the AICD’s company director’s course in August 2017;

• $8210 for Cr Cornish to complete a graduate diploma of applied corporate governance through the Governance Institute of Australia, 2016-2018.

by DAVID BELL

MOUNT LAWLEY MP Simon Millman has called for the WA Academy of Performing Arts to stay in Mt Lawley.

Talk of WAAPA moving into Perth’s CBD has been building over the past six weeks, and on September 17 Edith Cowan University vice chancellor Steve Chapman acknowledged to staff in an email he was looking at a foothold in the CBD, although “no decisions have been made”.

Mr Millman says locals have been stressing to him the importance of keeping their university.

Affection

“I have spoken with the vice chancellor this morning, and made sure he knows the level of affection people in our neighbourhood have for WAAPA and ECU,” Mr Millman said.

Prof Chapman’s email didn’t single out WAAPA, but said the uni’s senior executive team had been exploring “expansion and development” to get the best learning environment for students.

“One of the opportunities recently presented to us is the possible establishment of a new ECU campus based in a central CBD location to potentially replace the Mount Lawley campus over time.

“This would, if deemed economically feasible, be an exciting step in terms of ECU’s long-term growth and development.

Stirling council Lawley Ward candidate Paul Collins’ daughter played with the WA Youth Orchestra at the Mt Lawley campus.

“I’m supportive of WAAPA staying,” Mr Collins said.

“From my personal experience, my daughter attending the WAYO at WAAPA in Mount Lawley was very convenient — more convenient than traipsing into the CBD,” especially while carrying a violin.

Potential relocation sites that have been floated include the soon-to-be-redeveloped Carillon Arcade (developer Dexus has applied to build a 24-storey tower on the site) and the old Basil Kirke Studio on Adelaide Terrace.

by DAVID BELL

THE revival of the East Perth power station is a step closer with the McGowan government inviting five developers to submit detailed plans.

The five were the same shortlisted in 2016 after an expression of interest process: Mirvac, Frasers Property, Lendlease Development, Australian Capital Equity (the Kerry Strokes investment company wanting an art gallery there), and Powerhouse City, a newish conglomerate keen to turn it into a museum about electricity.

The 103 year old power station has been vacant since 1981, and a previous attempt to redevelop was mothballed under the last state government.

“More than 15 years after the community was first consulted, and four years after the EOI process commenced, we are powering ahead with the revitalisation of this prime waterfront location,” premier Mark McGowan announced this week.

The plans are due in September, with the winner to be picked first quarter of 2020.

BOOKWORMS will be wriggling for joy at Stirling libraries next month.

As part of the Garage Sale Trail, libraries in Inglewood and Dianella will be holding special book sales on Saturday October 19, 9am-11.30am.

“For sellers it’s a great opportunity to find new homes for those unwanted items and make a bit of extra money,” said a Stirling council spokesperson.

“Sellers can sell on one or both days. For shoppers, it’s a great way to map out a trail of local sales and find some bargains.”

For more details go to http://www.garagesaletrail.com.au

Gas and oil insider speaks out

AS 10,000 protestors in Forrest Place demanded the end of fossil fuel use, a manager at a multinational oil and gas company blended in among the students, politicians, activists and greenies calling for the death of his industry.

Speaking anonymously, the company man, who has experience in climate change policy, said he had some sympathy for the protestors who wanted to put him out of business.

“I do understand and have sympathy for the underlying concerns – but they have very little understanding about what needs to happen to solve the problem… yes, the world isn’t doing enough but it’s very simplistic to say ‘can’t we just stop all fossil fuels and go to renewables?’

“Even if Australia went to renewables overnight, Qatar or the US would take up LNG, or worse another country might start exporting coal which would increase global greenhouse emissions.”

He says it’s a global problem and for fairness’ sake it has to be tackled alongside global poverty.

“Even to deny people access to coal is an equity issue. Australia’s exports of LNG contributes to reducing emissions globally in Asia compared to coal. If you’re using LNG to produce electricity [then] the emissions are about half.”

His company has interests in natural gas, which many of the protesters want an end to. Even if it’s better than coal, they see it as damaging and slowing the uptake of renewable energy.

Renewables

Veteran Greens MP Robin Chapple was at Saturday’s rally: “We need to completely phase out fossil fuels and transition to renewable energy … in line with the science. Any climate policy that does not reflect the urgency of our situation is inadequate.

“The children who organised and led the rallies are the generation who are having to deal with our mess – and we are running out of time to fix it,” he said

The gas man agrees some change is needed, but he doesn’t want to see it lead to the economic collapse of WA, and transitioning to LNG can ease the pain of a longer-term take up of renewables while those technologies mature.

“If we want to remain a democracy, then we have to do it this way.

While a lot of the talk on the day was about the wellbeing of the planet, Richard Yin from Doctors for the Environment said human health was imperilled.

“Clean water, a healthy climate, and access to good food — all these are threatened under climate change. We know that the climate will get more unpredictable. With climate warming there’s going to be increased heat waves, more droughts, more adverse climatic events like storms, bushfires and floods, so for us it’s a public health emergency. These things cost lives. These events distress people both physically and mentally.

“Every one forgets the bushfires and the storms after a year or two, but the psychological impacts go on for years.“

by TATIANA DALIN

WHILE fastidious gardeners were blowing autumn leaves into the gutter, Tafe fashion student Aimee-Lee Verrier took a different view and saw some potential.

“The colours were so vibrant and orange and I just thought how beautiful those would look preserved into a dress,” the Coolbinia resident said.

“I also had been wanting to make a dress that looked like stained glass, so I decided to mix the two ideas by pressing the leaves and creating tiles before coating them in resin.”

Together with an eye-catching headpiece featuring two tall horns, the resulting dress recently took out the Wearable Technology category at the Perth Fashion Festival’s Future Runway show.

“The horns in my piece were meant to represent a warrior and strength rising from the fragility of the stained glass and such,” Ms Verrier told the Voice.

“The chains somewhat showcasing an element of oppression or breaking free from the chains of it.

“The whole piece itself is meant to be a symbol of femininity I suppose; sometimes fragile but strong and ready for war.”

Future Runway pits students from WA’s fashion design schools and universities against each other in six categories; South Metropolitan Tafe, which has campuses in Fremantle, Murdoch and Bentley, dominated with three of the awards.

Tafe fashion graduates Henrietta Grochowski, Gabrielle Riule and Jasmine O’Brien were also featured at the festival’s emerging designer show Generation Next.

The trimmed-back PFF, which last year ran into financial trouble, officially wound up last week, though there’s a couple of associated events still to come, including North Metro Tafe’s graduate show on November 17 and ECU’s on December 13.

by STEVE GRANT