“South Australians in France”

2017-2019

During the First World War, thousands of South Australian men and women contributed to the war effort in France and on the Western Front.

To mark the centenary of the end of the First World War and to recognise and understand the enduring connections formed between France and South Australia, Dr Fathi, with the support of Flinders University, organised a public event titled South Australians in France.

For over a year, the South Australians in France team engaged with metropolitan and regional South Australians to unearth the extraordinary stories based on the First World War objects that they hold.

The Project culminated in a public event in Adelaide on 23 and 24 February 2018.

The public event, which involved French scholars alongside Australian experts, brought to life the revealing histories of many of the objects held by the South Australian descendants of First World War veterans.

Acknowledgement of Country

I acknowledge the Kaurna People as the traditional owners and custodians of the land in which I am privileged to live and work. I pay my respects to their Elders past, present and emerging, and to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders peoples across what is now known as Australia.

I recognise the importance of continuing to educate myself about the ways in which these living cultures have developed over tens of thousands of years, and I express my sincere gratitude for being able to share a small part of this ongoing journey. As a historian, I support the Uluru Statement from the Heart and I remain impressed by its generosity.