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Gavin Andrews

Northern Cemeteries is delighted to work collaboratively with First Nations Peoples across the broader Sydney region with regards to the natural resources and cultural principles of the original people of this continent.  Our staff continue to learn and build relationship with local communities and other knowledge holders to understand the land that we live and work on.

Our ultimate goal is to create pathways for the wider community to connect and to be better informed about the original culture, natural resources and land management on which our cemetery sites are located.

Gavin Andrews is a D’harawal man who grew up on the mid-coast of New South Wales, near Newcastle, New South Wales. Throughout the 1970’s Andrews embraced what he calls his ‘political awakening’ and swiftly became socially attuned to the growing movement for recognised Land Rights for Aboriginal people across Australia. 

This soon led to Andrews becoming the first Land Council Treasurer in Campbelltown, having first studied architecture at the University of New South Wales. He later enrolled in postgraduate studies in Environmental Studies and became an Aboriginal Liaison Officer Environmental Planning with the New South Wales Department of Natural Resources. Andrews has also held the position of Manager of the Aboriginal Heritage Policy Unit with the New South Wales National Parks and Wildlife Service.

Uncle Gavin is one of the Sydney Knowledge Holders who talks about concepts of knowledge from different standpoints and how First Nations people shared knowledge for survival and living in synergy with the environment

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