'Jingeri! I'm Borobi', will be the welcome from the much loved Gold Coast Commonwealth Games mascot as he starts a new career as an ambassador for an Aboriginal language from his home on the Gold Coast.
He was the first Commonwealth Games mascot to carry an Indigenous name, with Borobi being the word for Koala in a number of Australia's eastern coastal languages.
He'll be just as popular as the face of the Yugambeh Museum Language and Heritage Research Centre's online classroom teaching portal, according to Chief Executive Officer, Rory O'Connor.
'Borobi's unrivalled recognition and appeal to youngsters has been proven. Now the Yugambeh Museum, with the support of the Queensland Government, will ensure his happy blue face is synonymous with language, storytelling and cultural revival in the Gold Coast region,' Rory said.
'This is just the beginning for Borobi as a language ambassador. He's a little guy with big ideas and he can't wait to get out and talk about stories and language.'
There used to be 250 Indigenous languages spoken in Australia, now 90 per cent are considered endangered.
Rory said Borobi will be a great asset keeping the Yugambeh language alive, particularly during International Year of Indigenous Languages.
The Yugambeh Online Language Program is available to South East Queensland primary schools on application to the Yugambeh Museum, which has also developed a language app that's available on iTunes.
