Audio Storytelling Hub

Sharing stories & experiences

We are proud to bring you local stories through our audio storytelling and oral history projects. We collect and curate recorded stories and experiences told by local people in their own voices to shine a spotlight on current events, social issues or historical perspectives. As a library, we preserve these stories for future generations and each story is a valued addition to our online library collection.

Unhoused - voices from the threshold: A podcast where we explore the changing face of homelessness in the Bega Valley, the levels of awareness in the community and the kinds of assistance available to those experiencing difficulties with housing. In later episodes we will also explore some of the housing strategies that are on the table and those being implemented for our community. Listen to the podcast. You can read more about the project via the Council website.

Hope Loss Resilience: A podcast series exploring how people stay hopeful, how they deal with loss, and the resilience that binds the Bega Valley. It focusses on community experiences in the early years of the COVID-19 pandemic. In this series, you’ll hear from a range of people across the Bega Valley — from nurses to school students, artists to small business owners, grocery workers to retirees. Stories of grief or ingenuity, told with humour, warmth or rawness. Listen to the podcast.

Stepping Up: Celebrating community leadership, this four-episode series speaks to thirteen community leaders about how they each harnessed and developed new skills in the face of disruption — featuring the voices of some of the Bega Valley's most active and creative emerging leaders. They share insights about how the Far South Coast NSW not-for-profit sector is now planning collaboratively for the future, through a place-based capacity building partnership program. From the regions to the cities, this series teaches us all how we can become better and more influential leaders in our homes, workplaces and communities. Listen to the podcast. 

16 Days of Activism Against Gender Based Violence: An annual global campaign that begins on November 25, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women runs through to December 10, Human Rights Day.  This campaign, initiated in 1991 during the Women’s Global Leadership Institute, mobilises individuals and organisations worldwide to advocate for the prevention and elimination of violence against women and girls. Listen to the podcast. 

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Oral histories are recorded life stories with people telling their own stories in their own words, and they safeguard rare and valued community insights.  Oral histories represent the people of this place and add to the shire’s historical records by sharing collective experiences. The preservation of oral histories can help us respond to future challenges.   

Talking Together: A Bega Valley Shire Library oral histories project focusing on COVID-19. The library has collected community stories of strength, generosity, grief and resilience, to capture an enduring record of the COVID-19 years. Talking Together celebrates the resilience of the Bega Valley by recording and sharing community stories of everyday inspiration during the pandemic. Together, this collection of oral histories creates a snapshot of our community’s diverse experience from a local point of view. Click here to listen to these stories, or click here to access the podcast.
 

Wonboyn Fire Oral History Collection: On the 4th January 2020 the coastal town of Wonboyn came under direct threat from the Border Fire which had crossed the Victoria/NSW border on New Years Eve. This collection of seven accounts of Wonboyn locals and visitors charts the events and aftermath of the out-of-control bushfire. Stories of strength, bravery and generosity reflect a deep sense of belonging and provide insight into how we act in times of distress. With time, the value and significance of these recorded histories will continue to emerge. Click here to listen to these stories. 

Please note that these interviews contain descriptions of bushfire events and evacuations that may be distressing to some listeners. 

You can access the full list of oral histories by clicking here:  

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The library has a range of recording equipment available for you to borrow. There is a complete audio recording kit with everything you need to make your own recordings and carry out your own oral history interviews. We have portable Zoom recorders, headsets, microphones and a portable TASCAM recording and mixer console. Library staff are available for one-on-one or group sessions on learning how to use the library’s audio equipment, which is available for loan. Email library@begavalley.nsw.gov.au