Guboo Ted Thomas (1909–2002), land rights activist, was a tribal Elder of the Yuin nation and grew up on the Wallaga Lake Reserve near Narooma. His father was a Yuin man and his mother was of Chinese descent. Aged nine, he accompanied his father and other Elders on a 350-km walk from Mallacoota to the Hawkesbury River, learning about the sacred sites for which he was later responsible; he re-enacted the walk when he was 80 with a group of disadvantaged Aboriginal children. During the 1930s he toured New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland with the Wallaga Lake Gumleaf Band, performing at the opening of the Sydney Harbour Bridge in 1932. After working as a commercial fisherman for many years, he became active in the land rights movement in the 1970s, working with the Australian Institute of Aboriginal Studies (now AIATSIS) to document significant sites on the New South Wales south coast. After a five-year campaign by Thomas, the title deeds to Wallaga Lake were handed over to the Yuin people in 1983. At the same time, he campaigned against logging on Mumbulla Mountain and for recognition of its cultural significance; then NSW Premier Neville Wran ordered logging to cease and it was gazetted as an Aboriginal Place in 1984. In the 1980s and 1990s Thomas met spiritual leaders such as the Dalai Lama, and held Dreaming camps around Australia and internationally to pass on his knowledge. Through his books and stories, Thomas strove to educate people to respect the earth, appreciate Aboriginal culture and live in harmony. Just before his death at the age of 93 he continued to protest against developments threatening Aboriginal sites near Wollongong.
