Dr Toni Roberts, photograph by Dianna Wells“Wominjeka Wurundjeri balluk yearmann koondee biiik.”

“Welcome to the land of the Wurundjeri people.”

This is the warm and generous greeting, written in Woi-wurrung and endorsed by Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung Elders, which visitors to the marram baba Merri Creek Parklands receive when they view the suite of interpretive and wayfinding signs that were installed in the parklands in July 2023.

A year on from the unveiling of the new signage, the thoughtful work of the project team has been recognised with a win at the Melbourne Design Awards 2024, receiving a Gold Award in the Graphic Design – Environmental Award category.

“We had recognised a need to bring unified signage to the marram baba Merri Creek Parklands, which is a multi-ownership park,” says Merri Creek Management Committee’s Luisa Macmillan. “As a collaborative organisation that works across jurisdictions and has a deep knowledge of Merri Creek, we were well placed to take on the task. This is a fantastic example of MCMC working to bring a project alive in a productive, cooperative environment.”

Led by MCMC on behalf of the marram baba Merri Creek Parklands Partnership Group, the project was managed by Dr Toni Roberts of Hatchling Studio. Toni co-ordinated the project from the initial brief right through to fabrication and installation, working with design company Diadem, signage company Icon Creations, the state government’s Suburban Parks Program, Cities of Hume and Whittlesea, Melbourne Water, Parks Victoria and the Wurundjeri Woi‑wurrung Cultural Heritage Aboriginal Corporation.

An artist and designer specialising in public art and experiential environments, Toni is particularly passionate about interpreting natural environments and was thrilled by the opportunity to bring her expertise to bear on marram baba Merri Creek Parklands.

“It’s a really rich habitat, and home to some protected species like the Growling Grass Frog and the Golden Sun Moth,” she says. “There are some very important ecological areas, and there’s a beautiful spot where you can go down a path to the creek and see the different types of rock – it looks quite coastal and it’s lovely to sit and watch the water. But a lot of the parkland remains quite hidden behind some industrial areas. Unless you knew about it, you wouldn’t think to drive to the end of the street and go through a fence to find this incredible natural bush area.”

Making the parklands more accessible for visitors through improved wayfinding was a key part of Toni’s focus for the project: directional signage to let walkers and cyclists know exactly where they are, and where to find the nearest amenities and exits. But equally important were the concepts of identity – leading with Wurundjeri place names – and interpretation.

“In creating an identity for the parklands it was essential to emphasise Wurundjeri culture and language. Other land owner/managers are also recognised, but in a less prominent way,” says Toni.

All of the wayfinding and identity signs feature a motif designed by young Wurundjeri artist Lewis Wandin-Bursill that represents stories from Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung culture. 

The new signage includes seven interpretive signs. Three of these focus on the importance of the area to the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung people and include text from Wurundjeri elder Aunty Doreen Garvey-Wandin; three focus on natural history and include text and illustrations by ecologist and former MCMC employee Brian Bainbridge; and one includes contributions from both Aunty Doreen and Brian. 

While Toni says the consultation process brought forward more stories than they were able to comfortably fit on the physical signs in the parklands, a QR code on each interpretive sign takes visitors to location-specific webpages with more extensive content. Wayfinding signs also have QR codes, and there is room for further development of the digital component of the project. 

“These signs will act as templates for future signage as it is rolled out across the marram baba Merri Creek Parklands,” she says.
The marram baba signage team: Louise Waters, Matthew May and Todd Dawson (from Diadem), Toni Roberts from Hatchling Studio and Luisa Macmillan (MCMC)