The historic fish kill event in Menindee on Barkindji Country in December 2018 and January 2019 saw an estimated one million dead fish in the Barka-Darling River. Staff from the NSW Department of Primary Industry’s Narrandera Fisheries Centre  were immediately called to assist in the rescue effort. Their team rescued 20 Murray Cod, 24 Silver Perch and 17 Golden Perch to take back to Narrandera on Wiradjuri Country, in order for the fish to heal, and eventually breed. Our two locations, Narrandera and Menindee, have been linked by this event. 

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In 2020 and 2021, The Cad Factory, Clontarf Foundation at Narrandera High School, the Narrandera Fisheries Centre, the National Museum of Australia and Barkindji River Rangers collaborated to care for the rescued fish, undertake a ceremonial cultural release and present a projection and performance event at Koori’s Beach in Narrandera called ‘Wirramarri: Long Way from Home.’ 

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Since 2020, over 170,000 fish have been released back into the Barka-Darling River by the Narrandera Fisheries Centre. In April 2023 when the second mass fish loss event happened in Menindee, it felt difficult to navigate the emotional response. To assist with this, we decided to present another large-scale cultural event ‘Pangala: Returning Home’ in Menindee.

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Art, science and ancient knowledges will come together once again through storytelling, projections and performance to explore how people from different cultural backgrounds can come together over serious national issues with reconciliation being at the forefront of their actions.