Congratulations to Elfie Shiosaki, whose poetry collection Refugia has been shortlisted for the Victorian Premier’s Literary Award for Indigenous Writing. 

Refugia is an unparalleled work of vision and political fury inspired by the beeliar (Swan River) and the NASA James Webb Space Telescope’s first year of science; this collection draws on colonial archives to contest the occupation of Noongar Country. As the bicentennial year of the colony of Western Australia approaches, Shiosaki looks to the stars and back to the earth to make sense of memory and the afterlife of imperial violence. 

Winners will be announced in March 2025. 

Judges comments 

“... Interwoven with historical documents from the colonial archive detailing the scars on Whadjuk boodja, Refugia speaks to the beauty and resilience of Country and community.” 

Elfie Shiosaki is a Noongar and Yawuru writer. She is an Associate Professor at the College of Arts and Social Sciences at the Australian National University. Her research and teaching explores Indigenous desires for human rights and self-determination. She was the Editor of Indigenous Writing at Westerly from 2017 to 2021. She is the author of two books.