National Reconciliation Week (NRW) is a time for all Australians to learn about our shared histories, cultures and achievements. Throughout the week, the aim is to explore how each of us can contribute to achieving reconciliation in Australia. As a nation, we must make a conscious decision to let reconciliation live in our hearts, minds and actions as we move towards a country where our greatest strength is our respectful relationships between the wider Australian community, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

The dates for National Reconciliation Week are the same every year: 27 May to 3 June. These dates commemorate two significant milestones in Australia’s journey towards reconciliation – the Australian 1967 Referendum and the Mabo decision in 1992.

This year’s theme for National Reconciliation Week was “Grounded in Truth: Walk Together With Courage.”
To accompany this year’s theme, the National Reconciliation Week 2019 poster was designed around a central “tree of truth” image. A guide to unpacking and understanding the poster has been included below:

Images sourced from Reconciliation Australia

This year our Bairnsdale Cubby Care location hosted a National Reconciliation Day Morning Tea for children and families to attend. The event was a special morning of commemoration which began with a Welcome To Country acknowledgment, followed by a Smoking ceremony. Using traditional Worimi Aboriginal language, Bairnsdale then renamed their learning rooms to Goola (Koala), Jirrah (Kangaroo) and Noorat (Wombat).