National Reconciliation Week is a time for all Australians to learn about our shared histories, cultures and achievements, and to explore how each of us can contribute to achieving reconciliation in Australia.
The dates for National Reconciliation Week remain the same each year, 27 May to 3 June. These dates commemorate two significant milestones in the reconciliation journey – the successful 1967 referendum, and the High Court Mabo decision respectively.
Reconciliation must live in the hearts, minds and actions of all Australians as we move forward, creating a nation strengthened by respectful relationships between the wider Australian community, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
The theme for National Reconciliation Week 2020 is In This Together. This theme reinforces that all Australians have a role to play when it comes to reconciliation, and in playing our part we collectively build relationships and communities that value Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, histories, cultures and futures.
Read more on the National Reconciliation Week 2020 website.
In previous years, National Reconciliation Week has been celebrated across the Central Highlands with a range of activities including traditional smoking ceremonies, book launches and morning teas.
COVID-19 restrictions mean celebrations in the Central Highlands region cannot proceed as they would normally, however, there are many exciting ways to get involved in activities on a national scale. Reconciliation Australia is urging everyone to share, support and celebrate National Reconciliation Week 2020 by tuning-in to a host of online events and sharing messages of support online. There’s 20 national events that people can take part in individually or with fellow community members, family and friends.
Activities include:
Central Highlands Regional Council Libraries have a range of resources available, including publications by local Blackwater artist/storyteller Eunice Day and poet Dan Davis who was born in Bluff. Visit the libraries website here.
Or you can head to the State Library of Queensland website to discover more about our Indigenous languages with their interactive map.
The Reconciliation Australia website has a range of educational resources and useful links to other sites.
The Share Our Pride website gives an insight of how life looks from an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspective.
The Creative Spirits website is designed to provide more information about Aboriginal culture.
Up-to-date weather, road closure and disaster information.