In 2012, the Nelson Meers Foundation was proud to be an Associate Producer of I Am Eora, a groundbreaking performance event that celebrated Sydney’s Aboriginal cultural continuity and embraced the sacred heart of our contemporary city. The most ambitious project of its kind ever commissioned by the Sydney Festival, I am Eora was inspired by three historical, now legendary, figures whose stories still resonate within Sydney: the gifted interpreter Bennelong, the fierce warrior Pemulwuy and the spirited Barangaroo. In the eyes of the I Am Eora creative team, led by director Wesley Enoch, each of these heroes has left a resonant legacy for contemporary Aboriginal Sydney – Bennelong embodying the spirit of reconciliation, Pemulwuy the spirit of resistance and Barangaroo, women’s strength and nurturing.

This boldly aspirational project gathered together an extraordinary group of 30 Aboriginal artists and performers in a fusion of contemporary creative skills from dance to cinematography to literature and a range of musical styles. Whilst lamenting the great losses and the pain of the past, I Am Eora was ultimately a story of deep cultural power, enduring strength and hope for the future of Aboriginal Sydney.