2022: Actions to Make Change
This year’s National Reconciliation Week theme, Be Brave Make Change challenged all of us to Be Brave and tackle the unfinished business of reconciliation so we can Make Change for the benefit of all Australians.
Change begins with brave actions in your daily life – where you live, work, play and socialise.
Take these actions with you every day of the year, not just during National Reconciliation Week.
TELL THE TRUTH ON RACISM
Racism damages lives and livelihoods, and it hurts the whole community.
See and hear the bias in personal conversations and attitudes.
Dig deep on systemic racism. See it. Call it out. Report it.
ACKNOWLEDGE COUNTRY
Wherever you are in Australia, you’re on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander land.
Know whose Country you are on.
Acknowledge Country in meetings and gatherings, add the name of Country to letters and parcels.
Display Country names on buildings and offices.
GET YOUR FACTS FIRST-HAND
Mainstream media can be inaccurate, negative, and unbalanced in its portrayal of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and issues.
Get your facts straight from the source.
Check NITV, Koori Mail, IndigenousX, ABC Indigenous and follow your local broadcaster through First Nations Media.
Organise a Reconciliation Film Club screening.
When you see racism in the media, report it.
FIGHT FOR JUSTICE
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are the most incarcerated people in the world, proportionally.
Learn and understand why this is so.
Challenge our leaders to take action on justice.
Get behind the Change the Record, Raise the Age and Family Matters campaigns.
OWN OUR HISTORY
Our true history has been hidden from us.
When talking about the history or story of Australia, always include the participation and presence of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Find out facts and ways to learn and talk about Australia’s history.
GET RECONCILIATION INTO SCHOOLS
If you didn’t learn about Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander cultures at school, make sure our kids do now.
See lots of info for schools and early learning services on the Narragunnawali website and at Learn our Truth.
Challenge colonial perspectives on history, support school curriculum changes, commit to a RAP in your school or early learning service.
LEARN YOUR LOCAL HISTORY
Break the silence on the massacres, forced removals, cultural genocide, and memorialising.
Find the truth about the colonial leaders and histories memorialised near you.
Are they heroes or criminals?
Consult on and investigate renaming.
SUPPORT SELF-DETERMINATION
First Nations-led organisations and activities strengthen the whole community.
Understand the strengths in First Nations community control in governing, health, education curricula, and media representation.
Support and promote community-controlled and Indigenous governed organisations.
BE A BRAVE ALLY
First Nations people make up just 3% of the Australian population.
Allies help to amplify issues and take action.
Understand how to be a good ally.
Step up, show up, be an accomplice. Disruption of the status quo is often necessary to achieve real change.
PRIORITISE CULTURAL SAFETY
Some workplaces and locations exclude or intimidate First Nations people.
Learn about and understand cultural safety and inclusive practices in your life and work.
Seek cultural awareness training locally or find a facilitator via Supply Nation.
SUPPORT BLAK BUSINESS
Past policies and practices took money and work away from generations of First Nations people. Stolen wages and lands undermined economic futures.
Understand how this poverty and economic disempowerment plays out today.
Support First Nations businesses as contractors, suppliers, and producers.
Purchase Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander art or products only from Indigenous-owned businesses.
Call out exploitation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art and cultures in mainstream businesses.
STOP CULTURAL THEFT
Strength in culture directly supports First Nations peoples health and wellbeing.
Cultural theft damages people and communities.
Buy Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander art or products only from Indigenous-owned businesses.
Support and follow Indigenous protocols in the arts.
RECONCILIATION AT WORK
Everyone benefits from a reconciliation-focussed workplace.
A Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) will help embed reconciliation into your internal workplace culture.
Work with practical reportable actions that build strong relationships with the community.
Already have a RAP? Join your RAP Working Group.
UNDERSTAND POLITICAL REPRESENTATION
Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander peoples have been fighting for a political voice, and structural changes like treaty, for more than 100 years.
Learn the history of representative bodies and calls for treaty.
Support current calls by First Peoples such as treaties, constitutional reform, and the Uluru Statement from the Heart.
SPEAK UP FOR LANGUAGES
Language is intrinsic to culture and identity.
There are around 800 dialects from more than 250 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages.
Know your local area language(s) of the Traditional Custodians of the land on which you live.
Support First Nations language revival programs. Know and use Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander placenames and petition councils and governments to do so.
AIM HIGHER IN HIGHER EDUCATION
First Nations expertise and voices are still battling to be heard in universities and colleges.
Ask for First Nations history, current affairs, and cultures to be taught at your university or college.
Encourage them to fund and support more research into truth-telling.
STAND FOR LAND RIGHTS
First Nations peoples have fought hard for land rights and native title.
Show you support First Nations ownership of Country.
Learn about Land Rights and Native Title in Australia.
Support or join land justice efforts and advocacy near you.
CARE FOR COUNTRY
First Nations peoples hold the knowledge to manage and protect Country.
Western science and environmental activists must learn from and embed this expertise.
Support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander groups like including Seed Mob, the Aboriginal Carbon Foundation, Firesticks Alliance, and Yerrabingin.
Learn about how climate change is going to directly affect Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Stand up for those already on the front line.
NRW 2022 & BEYOND
Reconciliation is everyone’s business, every day.
Use this National Reconciliation Week to learn about and celebrate the world’s oldest living culture.
Attend events, or host your own. Read, watch, listen and learn.
Help others to get on board and Be Brave, Make Change.
Get up, Stand Up Show Up at NAIDOC.
TELL THE TRUTH ON RACISM
Racism damages lives and livelihoods, and it hurts the whole community.
See and hear the bias in personal conversations and attitudes.
Dig deep on systemic racism. See it. Call it out. Report it.
ACKNOWLEDGE COUNTRY
Wherever you are in Australia, you’re on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander land.
Know whose Country you are on.
Acknowledge Country in meetings and gatherings, add the name of Country to letters and parcels.
Display Country names on buildings and offices.
GET YOUR FACTS FIRST-HAND
Mainstream media can be inaccurate, negative, and unbalanced in its portrayal of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and issues.
Get your facts straight from the source.
Check NITV, Koori Mail, IndigenousX, ABC Indigenous and follow your local broadcaster through First Nations Media.
Organise a Reconciliation Film Club screening.
When you see racism in the media, report it.
FIGHT FOR JUSTICE
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are the most incarcerated people in the world, proportionally.
Learn and understand why this is so.
Challenge our leaders to take action on justice.
Get behind the Change the Record, Raise the Age and Family Matters campaigns.
OWN OUR HISTORY
Our true history has been hidden from us.
When talking about the history or story of Australia, always include the participation and presence of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Find out facts and ways to learn and talk about Australia’s history.
GET RECONCILIATION INTO SCHOOLS
If you didn’t learn about Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander cultures at school, make sure our kids do now.
See lots of info for schools and early learning services on the Narragunnawali website and at Learn our Truth.
Challenge colonial perspectives on history, support school curriculum changes, commit to a RAP in your school or early learning service.
LEARN YOUR LOCAL HISTORY
Break the silence on the massacres, forced removals, cultural genocide, and memorialising.
Find the truth about the colonial leaders and histories memorialised near you.
Are they heroes or criminals?
Consult on and investigate renaming.
SUPPORT SELF-DETERMINATION
First Nations-led organisations and activities strengthen the whole community.
Understand the strengths in First Nations community control in governing, health, education curricula, and media representation.
Support and promote community-controlled and Indigenous governed organisations.
BE A BRAVE ALLY
First Nations people make up just 3% of the Australian population.
Allies help to amplify issues and take action.
Understand how to be a good ally.
Step up, show up, be an accomplice. Disruption of the status quo is often necessary to achieve real change.
PRIORITISE CULTURAL SAFETY
Some workplaces and locations exclude or intimidate First Nations people.
Learn about and understand cultural safety and inclusive practices in your life and work.
Seek cultural awareness training locally or find a facilitator via Supply Nation.
SUPPORT BLAK BUSINESS
Past policies and practices took money and work away from generations of First Nations people. Stolen wages and lands undermined economic futures.
Understand how this poverty and economic disempowerment plays out today.
Support First Nations businesses as contractors, suppliers, and producers.
Purchase Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander art or products only from Indigenous-owned businesses.
Call out exploitation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art and cultures in mainstream businesses.
STOP CULTURAL THEFT
Strength in culture directly supports First Nations peoples health and wellbeing.
Cultural theft damages people and communities.
Buy Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander art or products only from Indigenous-owned businesses.
Support and follow Indigenous protocols in the arts.
RECONCILIATION AT WORK
Everyone benefits from a reconciliation-focussed workplace.
A Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) will help embed reconciliation into your internal workplace culture.
Work with practical reportable actions that build strong relationships with the community.
Already have a RAP? Join your RAP Working Group.
UNDERSTAND POLITICAL REPRESENTATION
Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander peoples have been fighting for a political voice, and structural changes like treaty, for more than 100 years.
Learn the history of representative bodies and calls for treaty.
Support current calls by First Peoples such as treaties, constitutional reform, and the Uluru Statement from the Heart.
SPEAK UP FOR LANGUAGES
Language is intrinsic to culture and identity.
There are around 800 dialects from more than 250 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages.
Know your local area language(s) of the Traditional Custodians of the land on which you live.
Support First Nations language revival programs. Know and use Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander placenames and petition councils and governments to do so.
AIM HIGHER IN HIGHER EDUCATION
First Nations expertise and voices are still battling to be heard in universities and colleges.
Ask for First Nations history, current affairs, and cultures to be taught at your university or college.
Encourage them to fund and support more research into truth-telling.
STAND FOR LAND RIGHTS
First Nations peoples have fought hard for land rights and native title.
Show you support First Nations ownership of Country.
Learn about Land Rights and Native Title in Australia.
Support or join land justice efforts and advocacy near you.
CARE FOR COUNTRY
First Nations peoples hold the knowledge to manage and protect Country.
Western science and environmental activists must learn from and embed this expertise.
Support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander groups like including Seed Mob, the Aboriginal Carbon Foundation, Firesticks Alliance, and Yerrabingin.
Learn about how climate change is going to directly affect Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Stand up for those already on the front line.
NRW 2022 & BEYOND
Reconciliation is everyone’s business, every day.
Use this National Reconciliation Week to learn about and celebrate the world’s oldest living culture.
Attend events, or host your own. Read, watch, listen and learn.
Help others to get on board and Be Brave, Make Change.
Get up, Stand Up Show Up at NAIDOC.
