Dr Jodi Edwards nominated for NSW Aboriginal Woman of the Year Award

She is now 'more than a step closer' and has been recognised in the 2023 NSW Women of the Year Awards.

Dr Edwards, a Walbunja woman of Yuin Nation, has a kinship connection with Dharawal Country.

When told of her nomination in the NSW Aboriginal Woman category, Dr Edwards was shocked and thought a mistake had been made.

The awards website defines the NSW Aboriginal Woman of the Year as a role model who promotes economic, cultural and/or social wellbeing of Aboriginal people in NSW. The winner also will be a dedicated pillar of her community.

"When you see the light in in any kid's eye when they've recalled [language], they remember it and they know what it means. It's that ah-ha moment," Dr Edwards said.

"It's like the first time they ride a bike, the first time they skateboard, the first time they get on a surfboard."

At the end of 2022, Dr Edwards published 'Dharawal Words Phrases and Activities' and created a website, too.

"The only way [language] gets more fluent is if people talk it and so that's why for me it's important that it gets shared with Aboriginal children and non-Aboriginal children - so they can talk it with their mates and talk it with their family and talk it at home."

It was a simple trip to a supermarket that provided the humble educator with a defining moment she will carry with her forever.

"Over the speaker they said 'Nagangbi [hello] everyone! Today, we've got specials on ...'," she recalls.

She added that a group of children also visited the same Shell Cove Woolworths with a shopping list they had created in language.

"They wanted to put the shopping list in the window and he said 'no, I'm gonna put it co-labelled with things on the shelves'," Dr Edwards said.

Read more: Plan to name Shellharbour beach after Dharawal word for 'salt water'

Collecting words in language then became a passion for Dr Edwards. That process gathered pace when Aunty Carol Speechley and other elders made contributions.

"I kept collecting words, and then I sort of realised that I had ... words. But words alone don't make a sentence, and so I didn't know how to make a sentence," she said.

She went back to university to study a Masters in Language Education and so began her journey with Dharawal language and its revitalisation.

From establishing learn-to-surf initiatives to women's health programs, a land and sea ranger program, to creating public artworks, the impact of Dr Edwards' work is far-reaching.

"The important part in this award [nomination] is that my name might be on it, but I'm only as good as the people that turn up to the program," she said.

"I'm only as good as the kids that share the language. I'm only as good as the parents that bring their kids to learn the language."

Dr Jodi Edwards co-founded the Shellharbour Aboriginal Community Youth Association (SACYA) and helped to establish the Gumaraa Aboriginal Cultural Education and Illawarra Flame Trees Aboriginal Performing Arts Group.

"The things that they put on paper that I've done, I've done for the kids," she said.

And its "Generation Next" that provides Dr Edwards with optimism for the future of Dharawal language.

"When you're teaching the kids it it's like 'okay, it's going to go forward. It's not going backwards now. It's going to go forward'," she said.

READ MORE: Designs released for Aboriginal, inclusive play space in Shellharbour

Dr Edwards has previously been awarded the 2022 Shellharbour Woman of the Year and llawarra Regional NAIDOC Aboriginal Community Person of the Year.

Other nominees for NSW Aboriginal Woman of the Year include Natalie Ahmat NITV/SBS head of Indigenous news and current affairs, Deb Barwick CEO of the NSW Indigenous Chamber of Commerce, Lynda Edwards an advocate for the financial rights, fairness and inclusion of First Nations people, Kirsty Hargraves for her work with programs at Taronga Western Plains Zoo for Indigenous at-risk young people and Naomi Moran the general manager of Koori Mail newspaper.

The winners of the 2023 NSW Women of the Year Awards will be announced at a Sydney ceremony next month.

We've made it a whole lot easier for you to have your say. Our new comment platform requires only one log-in to access articles and to join the discussion on the Illawarra Mercury website. Find out how to register so you can enjoy civil, friendly and engaging discussions. Sign up for a subscription here.