To all Tasmanian Parliamentarians, I write as a Tasmanian historian and author, and as the president of the History Council of NSW, which is the peak organisation for history in this state.

I appreciate the challenges of balancing the Tasmanian budget, but urge you to reflect on the impact of 'right-sizing' the Tasmanian public service by cutting into the staff of TMAG. I acknowledge the fine speeches of Peter George, Meg Webb, Kristie Johnston, Vica Bayley and David O'Byrne on this matter – thank you.

To those who have not yet spoken, I hope that you will allow me to explain what the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery (and the Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery) mean to the nation and the world.

Tasmania was the second colony but is every bit as important to the history of the nation as New South Wales. It had the first Agricultural Society and the first Royal Society, which is the foundational organisation of the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, Australia's second oldest natural history museum.

Museums are not simply decorative cabinets for static objects, guarded by administrators. They are research institutions, dedicated to furthering knowledge and to refreshing our understanding of the past. Researchers build this knowledge over decades, and curators are essential to the work of recording this work and translating it to the world – they are not merely managers and their roles cannot be collapsed into each other.

TMAG has been a world leader in coming to terms with its historic role in the dispossession of the First Peoples of Tasmania and the collecting of their physical remains and cultural items. For 30 years, it has been collaborating with Aboriginal people to produce excellent interpretative materials that benefit audiences all over the world and are reviving Indigenous knowledge.

The Tasmanian Herbarium represents everything positive about scientific history in Tasmania. Its specialised work is intrinsic to the work of the Australian Antarctic Division and IMAS at UTas, and world-leading. It is essential to understanding how humans may survive climate change and to biosecurity and pest control. This is vital information for farmers, fishers and foresters, as well as tourism operators.

As a historian, I would not be able to do my work without the expert staff of the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery and Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery. The collections were integral to my recent bestselling history book, Musquito: The Real Story of a Legendary Colonial Warrior. I visit every time I come down, to see the art collections and celebrate the unique culture of my island home and revel in the knowledge derived from our landscapes and the Southern Ocean that defines our lives. When I see the film of the last known thylacine pacing in its cage, I ponder the damage done by those who acted on assumptions and deliberately caused the extinction of a wondrous creature.

Any cut to TMAG's staff and programs threatens to extinguish knowledge and make it impossible for the institution to attract visitors and researchers. Preserve its staff so it can not only preserve the past, but keep educating audiences.

Yours faithfully,

Dr Naomi Parry Duncan

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Dr Naomi Parry Duncan, MPHA
President
History Council of NSW Inc