He Lives Off-Grid in the Daintree. His Idea Could Help Australia Keep Its Stories Alive.
From the rainforest to the Northern Beaches, Matthew Campbell is developing The -Wayfinder, a national storytelling platform designed to let local people help shape how visitors discover their communities.
There are easier places to start a technology venture than an off-grid home in the Daintree Rainforest. But for photographer and emerging software creator Matthew Campbell, leaving the place he loves would defeat the point of building it.
Based at Cow Bay in Far North Queensland, Campbell spends much of his time exploring and photographing the natural world around him. Now, he is developing The -Wayfinder, an Australian digital tour shop and storytelling concept with a simple principle: people should have a say in how the stories of their places are shared, and should have opportunities to benefit from their contributions.
It started with people, not technology
Campbell traces the idea back to his childhood. His grandparents cared for children from Indigenous communities, and he remembers growing up alongside children he thought of as cousins. He became fascinated by their families, their Elders and their connections to Country.
As technology changed the way people communicate, he began thinking about how many local memories and stories might not be passed on. Could that same technology help people preserve their knowledge for children and grandchildren, without taking it away from those who hold it?
What could a visit look like?
Imagine arriving at the Daintree River ferry, scanning a QR code and opening a narrated guide on your phone without installing an app. As you travel, the proposed experience could introduce the landscapes around you through photographs, location-triggered narration, history, wildlife knowledge and stories from local contributors.
The Daintree is the intended first destination, but the bigger idea is national. Along the Beaches, for example, local photographers, historians, guides and residents might one day choose to create chapters about coastal landscapes, changing communities or memories of familiar places. These are possibilities, not announced experiences or confirmed local partnerships.
Campbell also envisions an online tour shop where creators could offer their own content under clear agreements about rights, permission, recognition and any payments. Offline capability is part of the development ambition, especially for regional and remote communities where phone reception is unreliable.
Stories remain with their people
The -Wayfinder is not intended to collect cultural knowledge without permission. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander stories would require the direction and informed consent of the appropriate Traditional Owners and authorised knowledge holders. They would decide what may be recorded, what stays private and what may be shared publicly or commercially.
The wider aim is to create future opportunities in photography, local guiding, digital media, education, software development and storytelling, while leaving people free to decide whether and how they participate.
A big idea with a rainforest beginning
The project is still in development, not a completed national service. Campbell has created early software concepts, visual material, photography and five explainer videos while seeking the technical expertise, educational links and suitable funding needed to take the next steps.
‘I don't want to leave this place behind,’ Campbell says of the Daintree. ‘I want to share what makes it so extraordinary, help protect its stories, and give other Australians the opportunity to do the same for the places they love.’
His ambition is to build and coordinate The -Wayfinder from the rainforest and eventually create opportunities for Australians to tell the stories of their own beaches, towns, landscapes and communities.
Every place has people who remember how it used to be. Every place has photographs with stories behind them. Campbell hopes The -Wayfinder can help more of those stories find their way to the next generation.
THE -WAYFINDER — AUSTRALIA'S STORIES. ONE JOURNEY.
Non-binding expressions of interest: Email INTERESTED, your town and how you would like to be involved to mfss.rainforest@gmail.com.
