Two large underground earth ovens will be temporarily installed in Hyde Park to cook a traditional feast of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander delicacies in celebration of NAIDOC in the City.
 
Crocodile, kangaroo, emu, chicken and fish, as well as vegetables such as corn and sweet potato, will be slow-cooked in the earth oven at the City of Sydney event on Monday 7 July.
 
Sydneysiders are invited to sample the food once it's served from 1pm.
 
Lord Mayor Clover Moore said the NAIDOC in the City event was a great way to celebrate traditional Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cooking, culture and history methods in the heart of Australia's biggest city.
 
“The City of Sydney is a strong supporter of NAIDOC Week events because they are an opportunity for everyone in our community to acknowledge and celebrate the oldest living culture on the planet,” the Lord Mayor said.
 
“By bringing this earth oven right into the city centre gives all Sydneysiders, workers and visitors a chance to experience a slice of traditional Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander life.”
 
From 5am on the day of the event, chefs from Goanna Hut and Fred's Bush Tucker will begin lighting fires inside two 1.5-metre wide, 40-centimetre deep pits that are scattered with large rocks.
 
Once the wood has burned down and the rocks are heated, the marinated and wrapped food will be placed inside the earth oven and sealed in with banana leaves, branches, wet hessian and sand to cook for about three hours.
 
The free NAIDOC in the City event, from 11am to 3pm, will also feature a range of other family-friendly activities and performances, including live music, dance, food, art and elders' storytelling at a pop-up lawn library.
 
The Australian Museum, Sydney Observatory and Taronga Zoo will also be hosting stalls focussing on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artefacts, astronomy and Australian animals.
 
Television fitness stars, Move it Mob Style, are among the many performers who will entertain the crowds on the day. The talented dance crew will also host a workshop where children will be encouraged to join in and learn some new moves.
 
Entertainment will be focussed on the main stage with some exciting original music acts, as well as in the traditional dance circle and dedicated kids' zone. There will also be a marketplace with arts and crafts, food stalls and information stands.
 
The theme for NAIDOC Week 2014 is Serving Country: Centenary and Beyond. It was selected by the National NAIDOC Committee to honour all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men and women who have fought in defence of country.
 
NAIDOC Week celebrates the National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee, which grew from the first political groups of the 1920s and is a chance for all Australian to celebrate the world's oldest living culture together.
 
NAIDOC in the City
Monday 7 July, 11am–3pm
Hyde Park North
sydneynaidoc.com.au
 
Other community events for NAIDOC Week include:
 
Lotus Lily and Sand Palm
1 July to 28 August
Kings Cross Library
A display of beautiful handprinted textiles from Merrepen Arts on the Daly River, Northern Territory.
 
Threads from Meriam Mir
1 July to 28 August – display
6pm-7pm, 8 July – curator talk (bookings essential on 02 9265 9333)
Customs House Library
Erub Ewer Meta artists work from the art centre on Darnley Island in the Torres Strait to revitalise Meriam Mir culture through their arts and crafts. Fabrics are screen or lino printed with designs inspired by traditional stories and the shells, fish and other sea creatures that are part of their environment.
 
Through Our Eyes: A Sydney Story of Contemporary Black Dance (1972-1979)
1 July to 28 August – display
7pm-8.30pm, 17 July – curator talk (bookings essential on 02 9265 9333)
Surry Hills Library
A photographic display curated by Carole Johnson that looks at the historical and political context for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander dance culture.
 
Remembering
1 July to 28 August
6.30pm-8pm – artist talk (bookings essential on 02 9265 9333)
Newtown Library
Artworks by Gangari artist Kathryn Dodd-Farawell inspired by the storylines of the Queensland Aboriginal Protection Act 1897 intervention that breached Aboriginal human rights on their lands.
 
NAIDOC in the City Bike Tour
9am, 9.30am and 11am, 9 July
30 Harrington Street, The Rocks
Bookings essential on 02 9265 9333
Enjoy a bicycle tour exploring some of Sydney's most historical sites. A professional guide will inform participants about sites of significance where first contact was made between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people, the Eora and the Berewalgal.
 
Flag Raising Ceremony
9am-11am, 7 July
Redfern Community Centre
This is the official NAIDOC Week Sydney flag raising ceremony, which include a Welcome to Country, morning tea and performances.
 
Stories and Songs with Aunty Kathy Farrawell and Friends
2pm-2.45pm, 8 July
Glebe Library (bookings essential on 02 9265 9333)
Aunty Kathy is a Gangari artist and storyteller living in Glebe.
 
Black Screen: No Apologies
12.30pm-1.30pm, 9 July
Glebe Library (bookings essential on 02 9265 9333)
No Apologies tells the story of two Aboriginal girls who travel to the 2011 FIFA World Cup in Germany.
 
The Stiff Gins in Concert: For Families and Community
2pm-2.30pm, 13 July
Waterloo Library (bookings essential on 02 9265 9333)
Hear the Stiff Gins, Kaleena Briggs and Nardi Simpson talk and sing about their latest project of language and song.
 
 
For media inquiries or images, contact City of Sydney Senior Media Adviser Jodie Minus, phone 0467 803 815 or email jminus@cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au 
 
For interviews with Lord Mayor Clover Moore, contact Elaine Kelly on
0477 362 550 or email ekelly@cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au