Contextualising digital cultural heritage: Bininj GIS and 3D modelling for conservation at Ubirr rock art complex, Kakadu National Park, Australia

Abstract

This project develops a 3D model of the Ubirr rock art complex in Kakadu National Park to explore digital opportunities for cultural conservation and sustainable management. A key site within UNESCO-listed Kakadu National Park, Ubirr is a gallery of millennia-old paintings that embody both intangible and tangible cultural values of the local Traditional Owners. Using Participatory GIS, this research examines how digital landscape modelling can support a Cultural Heritage Conservation Management Plan for Ubirr while addressing tensions between Aboriginal ownership, National Parks management, tourism, and cultural heritage conservation. Initiated by Bininj Traditional Owners, the project records Indigenous cultural values through interviews, sketch mapping, and aerial and on-ground data collection, culminating in a 3D photogrammetry model. Unreal Engine 5 was used to build an interactive digital landscape of the Nadab Floodplain, providing visual and audio context to align the photogrammetry model with Bininj relational ontologies. This research demonstrates how Cultural Values Mapping, GIS, and 3D modelling amplify Traditional Owner voices in management while ensuring that research aligns with cultural protocols. This methodology provides a blueprint for Indigenous communities, cartographers, and heritage practitioners to engage with mapping and modelling in culturally safe ways that protect Indigenous cultural heritage.