The word ‘Yarrabin’ is said to be Aboriginal in origin: meaning 'white gum tree'. (McCarthy; 1963)  

 
Yarrabin is also a locality near the junction of the Cudgegong and Meroo Rivers, some 35 Kilometres west of the town of Mudgee in the Central Tablelands of New South Wales in Australia.
 
Yarrabin Fire was established in 2020 following the devastating 'Black Summer Wildfires' that spread across large areas of South East Australia that same year.  Yarrabin Fire aims to help revive the traditional Aboriginal Cultural Practice of burning Country. We do this through performing Cultural Burns on both private and public land and sharing this knowledge through workshops and demonstrations. We also hold multi day Cultural Burn Camps at various locations throughout New South Wales.  

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Den Barber is the Director of Yarrabin Fire and is an Aboriginal man, descendant of the Traditional Custodians from Mudgee of the Wiradjuri people. 

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"Yarrabin Fire is named after this place because of the strong cultural connection that my family has to surrounding Country there". 

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Den has more than twenty years of experience in cultural heritage and environmental management as well as a range of Aboriginal Community Cultural Development Projects within New South Wales Government. 

He served as a Ranger and Aboriginal Co-Management Officer for the Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Area within NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) from 2002 before beginning with Greater Sydney Local Land Services as a Senior Land Services Officer, Aboriginal Communities in 2015. Den holds a Bachelor of Applied Science Degree (Parks Recreation and Heritage) from Charles Sturt University.

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Den is passionate about 'Country' and actively practices his culture. He has become a Cultural Burning Practitioner as the Founding Director of Koori Country Cultural Fire Aboriginal Corporation. Den has drawn on his experience as both a Professional Firefighter for NSW National Parks & Wildlife Service and Cultural Burning knowledge passed on to him from Elders in Cape York in Queensland and Far Western New South Wales.

 

Den has been ‘going bush’ for the past 15 years learning from his Cultural Teachers and Senior Elders. Yarrabin Fire is ready to share Cultural Burning knowledge along with stories, song, dance as well as artworks that relate to it.  

 

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