Disruptions to the Welcome to Country ceremonies at ANZAC Day services last month are indicative of the increasing volume of voices against these practices.
As part of our Reconciliation Action Plan (R.A.P.), Fulton Trotter Architects observes the cultural protocol of Acknowledgements of Country and Welcomes to Country, with a specific objective to increase our team’s understanding of their purpose and significance.
Many of our team have been fortunate enough to be welcomed by Traditional Owners as part of project openings, conferences, and other industry events. These Welcomes to Country have reminded us that we are playing a part in building upon the land their ancestors have lived on, and cared for, for millennia.
On our R.A.P. journey we have focused on team members engaging meaningfully with the concept of Country and the connection Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have to their land.
The commencement of our monthly staff meeting is now marked by a volunteer sharing their own connection or Acknowledgement of Country. This routine practice has been enhanced by the actions of our team, whether it is writing thoughtfully, talking proudly, or listening respectfully.
These actions embody the theme for this year’s National Reconciliation Week, All In: a call for all Australians to recognise their role in Reconciliation and advancing the rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Welcomes to Country and Acknowledgements of Country are not intended to illicit feelings of guilt. They are a generous gesture of recognition and inclusion, and a simple but profound way to show that you are ‘All In’ on reconciliation.
Photos by Scott Burrows & Vinicius Lima
