Yuin man Warren Foster has many stories that explain why fire and cultural burning mean so much to his people.
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Mr Foster told people gathered at Central Tilba on Tuesday, February 7, that his people had been looking after country for thousands of years "and the main way we do that is by fire".
They first check Mother Earth's many indicators to ensure the time is right to burn that particular type of country, ecosystem and soil and consult the stars the night before to ensure conditions will be right.
When starting fires by rubbing sticks, they blow on the fire's embers.
"That is blowing your spirit into it and giving it life."
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The fire moves out in a really slow circle with the crackling noise giving insects and mammals time to escape.
Within weeks the grasses that particular ecosystem needs start sprouting to support animals, followed by bush tucker and medicine.
After the Black Summer bushfires however invasive natives with high oil content like she-oaks and tea trees are dominating.
Evidence from Black Summer bushfires
Joel Deaves, who works with the Ulladulla and Nowra Local Aboriginal Land Councils, has been learning about cultural burning for 10 years.
He is part of a training program that aims to "bring cultural burning back to treat the whole ecosystem and slowly fix the damage from 150 years of mismanagement and neglect".
Four years ago they did cultural burning on 160 hectares at Bundanon Trust north of Nowra.
As Mr Deaves watched the Black Summer bushfires come through "the flank of the big fire dropped when it hit the part we burnt.
"We were trying to promote tussock grasses and by doing that we got rid of all the oily stuff," Mr Deaves said.
Likewise, a little burn was done in Tathra before the bushfires.
"The big fires went right around it," Mr Foster said.
Fire as a tool and healer, not enemy
Theirs is a different mind-set.
"Rather than fighting fire as an enemy, we work with it to our benefit
"We have that deep connection and spirituality with fire," Mr Foster said.
He said his people had never seen anything like the magnitude of the Black Summer bushfires, especially all over NSW.
"It was neglect, keeping us Yuin people off country.
"After thousands of years of living on the land our people had it down pat.
"We look at fires as a healing tool but at the moment country is really sick because we haven't been looking after it," Mr Foster said.
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