Hattah-Kulkyne National Park: interpreting stories for a new century

Attitudes and values have changed over the last generation and this needs to be reflected in the way we interpret Australia's cultures and heritage. Like many tourism sites, the Hattah-Kulkyne Visitor Centre needed to upgrade its interpretive features while still reflecting its unique sense of place in the Victorian Mallee.

We were contracted to upgrade the interpretive content in a large mud-brick visitor centre in one of Victoria’s national parks. The project required considerable consultation with key stakeholder groups and required the synthesis of a large amount of educational and historical information for a modern audience, including a brand new map (formed out of many others provided by key stakeholders).

Ecocreative managed the entire project, including several site meetings with a range of participants and the final installation of eight large panels, lighting and a ceiling-mounted data projector.

Aside from Aboriginal cultural sensitivities and the need to balance messages that considered environment and agriculture and the sheer amount of information that needed to be updated and re-imagined, many technical challenges were overcome, including the remoteness of the location, the variable structural character of the mud-brick walls, the fact that the centre was rarely staffed, and the centre’s reliance on solar energy.