Overview

Including Acknowledgement of Country and Welcome to Country into meetings, gatherings, and events shows respect by upholding Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural protocols. It is important to understand the difference and treat both with respect.

Welcome to Country

A Welcome to Country or Traditional Welcome is where the traditional Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander custodians welcome people to their land at the beginning of a meeting, event or ceremony. This welcome must be conducted by an appropriate person such as a recognised Elder from the local area.

Welcome to Country enables the Traditional Custodians to give their blessing to the event and is an important mark of respect for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as Australia's original inhabitants.

Whether spoken or performed, the aim of the ceremony is to acknowledge the traditional custodians and welcome the wider community.

The Elder or a representative will give their blessing to the event, function, meeting or occasion. In response, the host or key speaker will acknowledge the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities by paying respects to Elders past and present.

To arrange a Welcome to Country, contact your local Aboriginal Land Council.

Acknowledgement of Country

An Acknowledgement of Country is an opportunity for anyone to show respect for Traditional Owners and the continuing connection of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples to Country.

An Acknowledgement of Country can be offered by any person and like a Welcome to Country, is given at the beginning of a meeting, speech or function.

Preparing an acknowledgement of country:

There is no specific acknowledgement of country protocol which is appropriate for all communities, contexts or geographical locations, however there are guides and formats to follow and you should practice, be genuine and if possible, research which Country you are acknowledging.

An Acknowledgement of Country can be performed in the absence of an Aboriginal representative and is commonly done so at the beginning of meetings, events and functions.

Suggested formats and templates

Acknowledgement of Country (performed by a non-Aboriginal person).

Example 1.

I would like to show my respect and acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the Land, of Elders past and present, on which this meeting takes place.

Example 2.

I would like to acknowledge the (insert name here) people who are the Traditional Custodians of this land. I would also like to pay respect to the Elders both past and present of the (insert name here) Nation and extend that respect to other Aboriginal people present.

It is acceptable to read this from notes though it is preferable to say them without prompts.

Things to do when giving an acknowledgement of country:

• Be specific: Name the Country you are on. To learn what Country you're on
• Be considerate: Research the Country you are on so you know who and what you are acknowledging.
• Be creative: Adapt an Acknowledgement to your context.
• Be confident: Speak with purpose and breathe.

Things to not do when giving an acknowledgement of country:

• Rush: an Acknowledgement of Country is not housekeeping - treat it with the respect it deserves.
• Speak in past tense: avoid "was" and "were", Aboriginal people are still here.
• Use inappropriate terminology: avoid terms slurs and derogatory terms such as "Aborigines" or abbreviations such as "ATSI".
• Allude to intentions: speak strong in the moment - "I acknowledge" as opposed to "I would like to acknowledge".

Other forms

An Acknowledgement of Country can be expressed on behalf of an organisation in different forms of communications, such as email signature blocks, websites, and on social media, for example:

The Centre for Volunteering acknowledges the Gadigal People of the Eora Nation as the traditional owners of the land on which our office stands. We recognise the importance of their connection to place and community on these lands and pay our respects to Elders, past, present and emerging.

For more information visit:

https://www.reconciliation.org.au/acknowledgement-of-country-and-welcome-to-country