Celebrate National Reconciliation Week – NRW 2020

Join us online on the 27th of May for the launch of National Reconciliation Week – NRW 2020 – hosted by Reconciliation Queensland. The event will be live streamed on YouTube and Facebook from 12:30PM. Then at the same time each day, for the duration of the week, we will be hosting webinars covering the Five Dimensions of Reconciliation.

FACEBOOK LIVE STREAM

https://www.facebook.com/reconciliationqld/live/

YOUTUBE LIVE STREAM – Link for Mabo Day, 3 June 2020

https://youtu.be/QWmrescwRFQ

Official launch event – 27 May 2020

While social distancing rules during the current pandemic have necessarily restricted our ability to run or support community events this year, we hope you will enjoy this online celebration for National Reconciliation Week, in partnership with other Reconciliation peak bodies throughout Australia.

DOWNLOAD AN RQI NRW 2020 | FIVE DIMENSIONS FLYER [PDF 399KB]

The Five Dimensions of Reconciliation

A distinguished line up of speakers will join us for our daily webinars to discuss the Five Dimensions of Reconciliation.

• Race Relations: All Australians understand and value Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and non-Indigenous cultures, rights and experiences, which results in stronger relationships based on trust and respect and that are free of racism.
• Equality and Equity: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples participate equally in a range of life opportunities and the unique rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are recognised and upheld.
• Unity: An Australian society that values and recognises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures and heritage as a proud part of a shared national identity.
• Institutional Integrity: The active support of reconciliation by the nation’s political, business and community structures.
• Historical Acceptance: All Australians understand and accept the wrongs of the past and the impact of these wrongs. Australia makes amends for the wrongs of the past and ensures these wrongs are never repeated.

Speaker bios

The downloadable bios below provide background on our eminent panel of NRW 2020 speakers, who will addressing the Five Dimensions of Reconciliation.

• Unity – Mabo Day, 3 June 2020 [PDF 494KB]
• Historical Acceptance – Tuesday, 2 June 2020 [PDF 549KB]
• Institutional Integrity – Monday, 1 June 2020 [PDF 561KB]
• Equality and Equity – Friday, 29 May 2020 [2MB]
• Race Relations – Thursday, 28 May 2020 [549KB]
• Launch event speakers flyer – Wednesday, 27 May 2020 [PDF 1.8MB]

The NRW 2020 theme

The theme for NRW 2020 is ‘In this together’.

This theme is now resonating in ways we could not have foreseen when Reconciliation Australia made its announcement earlier this year, but it reminds us whether in a crisis or in reconciliation, we are all in this together.

Reconciliation is a journey for all Australians – as individuals, families, communities, organisations and importantly as a nation. At the heart of this journey are relationships between the broader Australian community and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

We all 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.

What is National Reconciliation Week?

National Reconciliation Week (NRW) 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 NRW 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.

A brief history

National Reconciliation Week started as the Week of Prayer for Reconciliation in 1993 (the International Year of the World’s Indigenous People) and was supported by Australia’s major faith communities. In 1996, the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation launched Australia’s first ‘National Reconciliation Week’.

In 2000, Reconciliation Australia was established to continue to provide national leadership on reconciliation. In the same year, approximately 250,000 people walked across Sydney Harbour Bridge as part of NRW, while 60,000 crossed the William Jolly Bridge in Brisbane, showing support for the reconciliation process.

Today NRW is celebrated by communities, businesses and individuals at thousands of events across Australia.

Remembering the Bridge Walks

Twenty years ago, Charmaine Foley was the Queensland Coordinator of the Australians for Reconciliation project, a volunteer initiative that had arisen to support the work of the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation (CAR).

The Bridge Walks for Reconciliation and similar events around Australia followed Corroboree 2000, a meeting of dozens of high-profile Indigenous and non-Indigenous leaders at the Sydney Opera House on 27 May 2000.

Charmaine was Reconciliation Queensland’s guest speaker on Australia Day, 26 January 2020, and recalled her involvement in the historic bridge walks in Brisbane and Sydney, twenty years ago. Watch the video:

Free membership to mark bridge walk 20th anniversary

Fees have been waived for new adult and concession Reconciliation Queensland memberships to celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the Walk for Reconciliation across our nation’s major bridges and city streets.

New adult or concession Reconciliation Queensland memberships taken out between 1 January 2020 and 30 June 2020 will be free of charge.

Click here to learn more and access your free RQI membership.

Get involved in NRW 2020 in Queensland

Find out what’s happening in your local area and in every region right around Queensland.

Brisbane City Council

In the State capital, Brisbane City Council has advised that it will light up major landmarks in the colours of the Aboriginal and the Torres Strait Islander flags.

Landmarks to be lit up during NRW 2020 include the Story Bridge, Victoria Bridge, Tropical Dome, Wickham Terrace car park and Reddacliff Place sculptures.

Queensland Government

The Queensland Government is working on a number of initiatives as an act of reconciliation.

• The Celebrating Reconciliation Small Grants Program encourages all Queenslanders to participate in local reconciliation events in or around National Reconciliation Week.
• The Queensland Reconciliation Awards recognises businesses, community organisations, educational institutions and partnerships that are taking positive steps towards reconciliation across Queensland.
• The Queensland Government Reconciliation Action Plan outlines government’s commitment to responsive policy development and the delivery of programs and services for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Queenslanders.

Celebrating Reconciliation Small Grants Program

The Queensland Government’s Celebrating Reconciliation Small Grants Program encourages all Queenslanders to participate in National Reconciliation Week.

The successful recipients under the 2020 Celebrating Reconciliation Small Grants Program have been announced.

Funding of $250,000 has been allocated for 48 events to be delivered across Queensland. The successful recipients will be hosting events to celebrate National Reconciliation Week to help Australians to come together to learn, share and develop a deeper understanding and broader acceptance of our shared national story.

Find out more about the 2020 successful grant recipients (PDF, 617 KB).

Queensland Reconciliation Awards

Nominations have closed for the 2020 Queensland Reconciliation Awards.

The Queensland Reconciliation Awards recognises initiatives undertaken by businesses, community organisations, educational institutions and government departments going above and beyond their core business to foster reconciliation and pave the way for a better future for our state.

Recipients will be announced at a ceremony during National Reconciliation Week, 27 May – 3 June 2020. Read about the 2019 finalists here.

Reconciliation Australia NRW 2020 resources

Click here or the image below to download logos, web banners and posters for your event from Reconciliation Australia’s website.