The Koorie Heritage Trust was established in 1985 by Ron Merkel QC, the late Ron Castan AM QC and a respected Koorie elder with a commitment to protect, preserve and promote the living culture of the Aboriginal people of south-eastern Australia.
The Trust emerged from a need for greater awareness, understanding and appreciation of Koorie culture throughout the community, and the immediate need for Koorie cultural heritage material to be controlled, managed and curated by Koorie people. Since then, the Trust’s activities and programs have expanded and include: