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The Importance Of Emu Dreaming

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Emu Dreaming (Norris, 2007) is a valuable resource for sourcing reputable and reliable information on Aboriginal Astronomy. Norris, who is an astrophysicist, works for CSIRO Australia Telescope National Facility and is also a Professor of Indigenous Studies at Macquarie University (CSIRO, 2013). His studies into Aboriginal Astronomy have lead to an ongoing research project “The Aboriginal Astronomy Project” which Norris (2007) says aims to explore the extent to which astronomy permeates Australian Aboriginal cultures.

There are many reasons to justify why Emu Dreaming is a reputable and reliable resource. However, firstly it is important to address the fact that Norris is himself not of Aboriginal descent, as Moreton Robinson (2004) could perceive this as a serious issue. She states when information about Aboriginal cultures and histories are written by white academics they position the author as superior in knowledge over Indigenous Peoples. However, Norris does not ‘other’ Indigenous Peoples in the information provided on his website, nor does he present himself as a superior ‘knower’ of Aboriginals or Aboriginal Astronomy. Rather he directly addresses the historical misrepresentation and superiority of white academics by acknowledging that his studies into Aboriginal Astronomy have been impeded by…show more content…
In a recent article published in The Conversation, Norris (2014) noted the importance of educating students about Aboriginal perspectives. He stated this would enable all Australians to understand and value Aboriginal intellectual and scientific achievements. By encouraging others to celebrate the significant contributions Aboriginal Peoples have made to development in science, Norris is helping to move Australia towards being a society that acknowledges and respects the culture of their Indigenous
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