**BTN Presenter Showcases Indigenous Culture Through T-Shirts** Jack Evans, a presenter for Behind the News (BTN) and a proud Gomeroi man, greets a million children across Australia each week with the word "Yaama," which means hello in Gamilaroi. Evans aims to instill pride in his audience about their identities and backgrounds. This year, he has introduced a creative way to share his culture and language through custom-designed T-shirts. "I came up with the idea to make a shirt each week that included a word from my mob's language, Gamilaroi or Gomeroi, with a little drawing to go along with it," Evans said. He believes he is the first Indigenous Australian to present BTN, which motivates him to amplify his heritage. "I'm proud of it and I want people to know that," he added. Each T-shirt design begins with a Gamilaroi word. Evans often searches online dictionaries for inspiration. "I pick one that I think will either look cool or I could draw a picture with," he explained. Some designs take only an afternoon to create, while others may take weeks to develop. For example, he once spent a long time deciding how to illustrate a boot. "Then I decided, 'No, there needs to be two boots, and it needs hairy legs,'" he said. With assistance from his boyfriend, Joel, Evans transforms his designs into vinyl cutouts that are heat-pressed onto T-shirts. He noted that the project stemmed from having the tools at home and wanting to incorporate culture into his presentations. Evans did not grow up surrounded by fluent Gamilaroi speakers, making this T-shirt initiative a significant cultural reconnection for him. He shared that his grandmother was denied her identity and told she was white for protection. It was only later, through research by his aunt, that the family learned about their heritage. His aunt and brother have pursued studies in Gamilaroi at TAFE, which Evans believes is vital for preserving Indigenous languages. A 2019 survey indicated that only 12 out of 250 Indigenous Australian languages were still actively learned by children. "Indigenous languages are at threat of being lost, and a lot of work is done to make sure that our languages stay and thrive moving forward," he said. Fans of BTN have taken notice of Evans' T-shirt designs, with some students even submitting their own ideas. One school that teaches Gamilaroi provided suggestions, and Evans incorporated one featuring a magpie. He noted that some students expressed that their favorite part of each BTN episode was seeing his T-shirt. When asked to choose his favorite T-shirt, Evans likened it to picking a favorite child. He reminisced about a design featuring a drag kangaroo, which was inspired by a school request. "I had drawn up a kangaroo, and then Joel was like, 'That looks so menacing! That kangaroo looks terrifying!'" Evans recalled. He decided to transform it into a drag kangaroo, stating, "Now I want to do all the animals as drag." Evans plans to continue creating original T-shirts each week, hoping to inspire young viewers of BTN. "Everything I do is for my younger self … you want to be that role model that you didn't have," he said. He emphasized that his work is about authenticity and pride in one's culture, encouraging everyone to embrace their identity. "It's less about the specifics of the T-shirts themselves, but a way of just showing pride in who you are — whatever culture, wherever you're from, however you identify, whatever it is, be proud of it," Evans concluded.