Buchan Caves Reserve Heritage Interpretation Plan & Visitor Centre Reimagining
We worked closely with the Gunaikurnai community and Parks Victoria to create an Interpretation Plan that reimagined the interpetation of the Buchan Caves Reserve from a Gunaikurnai perspective.
In 2022, SHP was engaged by Parks Victoria to develop a Heritage Interpretation Plan and redesign the historic Visitor Centre for the Buchan Caves Reserve in East Gippsland. Our work involved collaboration with the Gunaikurnai Land and Waters Aboriginal Corporation (GLaWAC) and Parks Victoria, who jointly manage the site, to develop a series of site-responsive interpretation installations and to co-design a reimagined Visitor Centre (with Grimshaw).
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The project began with a series of workshops, which we facilitated for Parks Victoria and GLaWAC. The workshops aimed to establish the appropriate methodology for the project as well as collect themes and stories for the Interpretation Plan and Visitor Centre. On the suggestion of the Elders, we then recorded video histories with key Gunaikurnai people, which formed the basis of the interpretive concepts that we developed with Grimshaw.
Through ongoing consultation with the Gunaikurnai community, we ensured that the Gunaikurnai’s voice reshaped the visitor experience at Buchan Caves. We also embedded training, employment and capacity-building initiatives for the Gunaikurnai community in plans for future stages of the project.
Client: Parks Victoria
Location: East Gippsland, Victoria; Epping, Victoria, Australia
Date: 2022 – 2024
Scope of works: Historical research, consultation, lesson plans, co-delivery of education programs.
