Be Brave, Make Change: Reconciliation Week Events Happening Across Australia
- Words by Peppermint
top image CHILDREN’S GROUND
Friday will mark the start of National Reconciliation Week here in Australia – a time for all Australians to contribute to building better relationships with First Nations peoples.
The theme this year is ‘Be Brave. Make Change.’ and challenges us all to do the work to make changes that will benefit us as a nation – not just leave the heavy lifting to First Nations peoples.
True reconciliation requires so much more than a mere week of reflection. And in reality, there really has never been a state we could “reconcile” to. To move forward we need real, systemic change from both the top down and at the grassroots level.
A Google search will serve up a plethora of reliable resources delving further into race, diversity and equality (and is a great starting point) but we’ve compiled a list of events happening over the next week where you can support Australia’s First Nations peoples. With hundreds of activities planned from the Opera House to local libraries, take the opportunity to engage with our history and learn something new.
Wear It Yellow
Wear it Yellow for Children’s Ground this National Reconciliation Week and help the Aboriginal-led not-for-profit fundraise for change and brighten the future for First Nations kids and their families.
Reconciliation Week Pop-Up Market
For one night only, the Reconciliation Week Pop-Up Market is taking over Level 22 of the Spencer Street WeWork site and filling it with an epic line-up of First Nations businesses and creatives. Feast your senses on a cavalcade of art, food and drink, design and culture all under one roof with legends like Kinya Lerrk, Haus of Dizzy, Salty One and many more!
NATIONAL RECONCILIATION WEEK PLANTING
The City of Tea Tree Gully in South Australia is helping sow the seeds of reconciliation by literally offering you the opportunity to to sow some native seeds. Join Kaurna Elder Tamaru on an outing to learn more about Aboriginal culture and help plant traditional bush tucker plants in the Stevens Reserve.
EUCALYPTUSDOM
Give me a home among the gum trees… Explore our long-standing history and ever-changing relationship to that stalwart specimen of Australiana, the eucalyptus tree, with this fascinating exhibition from the Powerhouse Museum, featuring over 400 objects from the Powerhouse Collection alongside 17 newly commissioned works by creatives from across the fields of design, architecture, film, applied arts and performance.
READ MORE – Get Up, Stand Up, Show Up: Why 26 January Can Never Represent a Day of Unity
THE CENTRAL VICTORIAN INDIGENOUS FILM FESTIVAL
Experience the exciting output of a new generation of storytellers. The Central Victorian Indigenous Film Festival returns in 2022 as part of National Reconciliation Week, showcasing an exciting range of Indigenous films, documentaries and videos starring and telling the stories of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island people. Many events and screenings are available online to audiences across Australia so check out the program now!
ULURU STATEMENT FROM THE HEART 5 YEAR ANNIVERSARY – WALK AND ACTION
26 May, or National Reconciliation Week Eve, falls upon the five-year anniversary of the Uluru Statement from the Heart. Show up and show your support by joining this walk around UQ’s St Lucia Campus and learn more about the Uluru Statement from the Heart, the recent Yarrabah Affirmation and how you can be brave and make change for an Indigenous voice in parliament!
READ MORE – Indigenous Resources For Becoming An Ally
STATE LIBRARY OF QUEENSLAND – MABO 30 YEARS ON
The legendary Eddie Mabo is getting an exhibition of his own at the State Library of Queensland. Legacy: Reflections on Mabo celebrates the thirtieth anniversary of the landmark decision – which recognised in Australian law for the first time the right of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples to their lands – by acknowledging and commemorating his remarkable life, politics, activism and legacy.
VIRTUAL INDIGENOUS FILM FESTIVAL 2022
The Virtual Indigenous Film Festival returns for its triumphant fourth year. Curated around the Reconciliation Week theme, ‘Be Brave, Make Change’, the festival features five incredible First Nations films exploring inspiring changemakers, short films from exciting emerging talents and live Q&A panels with the filmmakers, industry leaders, community elders and cultural academics. Don’t miss this exciting exploration of First Nations stories, voices and conversations.
CELEBRATE FIRST NATIONS STORIES, LANGUAGES AND CULTURES
The Indigenous Literacy Foundation (founded by Suzy Wilson of Riverbend Books, Bulimba Brisbane!) celebrates Reconciliation Week with this virtual event, capturing the voice and hearts of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, Elders, authors, community organisations and individuals from across the country through stories – in books, in song and dance, in conversations, through hunting and cooking and most importantly, in language.
READ MORE – “Deadly Every Day of the Year”: Four Lessons to Reflect on This NAIDOC Week
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But don’t you dare shit on your old self while you do it.
Hold yourself with reverence and tenderness and respect, because you got you this far. You did your very best with the information and tools you had at the time. You scraped yourself together, you made it work, you survived what felt impossible to survive: again and again and again.
You are perpetually in the process of becoming, whether you can feel it or not, whether or not you add it to your 2026 to-do list.“
Some very wise words from @Damon.Gameau to take us into 2026 🙌🏼
⭐️ We made it!!! ⭐️
Happy New Year, friends. To those who smashed their goals and achieved their dreams, and to those who are crawling over the finish line hoping to never speak of this year again (and everyone else in between): we made it. However you got here is enough. Be proud.
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Ok 2026: let’s do this. 💪🏼
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