Momentous is an online project from the National Museum of Australia. When our world experiences big changes, we look to the past to understand what's happening now.
The 2019–20 bushfire season was the longest and most intense experienced in our history. Before the fire season ended, the first case of Covid-19 was recorded in Australia, on 25 January 2020.
The impact of these events were experienced by people from all walks of life. They affected how we live and they show how we adapted and changed in times of crisis.
Momentous built on the success of our Fridge Door Fire Stories and Bridging the Distance Facebook groups, in responding to and collecting personal experiences of defining moments in our history.
Momentous stories were expressed in photos, videos, audio clips and words. We invited guest contributors including Benjamin Law and Tegan Taylor to share their experiences.
The Museum also called for stories from people in the community living with disability as part of its annual International Day of People with Disability celebrations. These contributions to Momentous were launched on the Museum's YouTube channel.