Aboriginal groups (or Yolngu) from Elcho Island in the Northern Territories have initiated a program to digitize their diverse traditional knowledge, in an effort to preserve and revive their culture, including their songs, languages, photos, stories, medicine, and clan associations. The program is seen as a way for the knowledge to be passed from the elders to the young and to keep the cultural knowledge locally grounded. The cultural database and artifacts will be housed at the Galiwinku Knowledge Center, rather than at Western museums, galleries, or universities. The software is also being tested and formatted by indigenous individuals from the region, and will eventually include three different levels of information: public, private, and secret. Currently all information is public knowledge, but as the program develops the Yolngu will be able to control who has access to their sacred knowledge.
