An Acknowledgement of Country allows for any individual to pay their respects to the Traditional Custodians of the lands on which they are working.
With an increase in employees working flexibly and participating in online meetings from various locations, it is important to continue to recognise this cultural protocol.
The examples of Acknowledgement of Country below can be used at the beginning of a meeting, speech or formal event – when attending a face-to-face event and when online. An Acknowledgement of Country can also be included when publishing and distributing e-resources.
In person
If you know who the Traditional Custodians are for the land on which you are hosting the meeting or formal event:
I acknowledge (insert Traditional Custodians name) on the lands that we are meeting today. I pay my respects to Elders past, present and emerging and celebrate the diversity of Aboriginal peoples and their ongoing cultures and connections to the lands and waters of NSW.
I also acknowledge and pay my respects to our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people joining us today.
If you do not know who the Traditional Custodians are for the land on which you are hosting the meeting or formal event:
I acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the lands that we are meeting here today. I pay my respects to Elders past, present and emerging and celebrate the diversity of Aboriginal peoples and their ongoing cultures and connections to the lands and waters of NSW.
I also acknowledge and pay my respects to our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people/colleagues joining us today.
Online
If you know who the Traditional Custodians are for the land on which you are hosting the meeting or recording the webinar:
I acknowledge that I am hosting/recording this meeting/webinar from the lands of the (insert Traditional Custodians name).
I also acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the various lands on which you all work today and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people participating in this meeting/webinar.
I pay my respects to Elders past, present and emerging and celebrate the diversity of Aboriginal peoples and their ongoing cultures and connections to the lands and waters of NSW.
If you do not know who the Traditional Custodians are for the land on which you are hosting/recording the meeting/webinar:
I acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the various lands on which we work today and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people participating in this meeting/webinar.
I pay my respects to Elders past, present and emerging, and recognise and celebrate the diversity of Aboriginal peoples and their ongoing cultures and connections to the lands and waters of NSW.
In documents or online resources
An example of a respectful and inclusive Acknowledgment of Country for inclusion into any e-published tool or resource that will be distributed to a large audience:
We (enter organisations name) acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the lands where we work and live. We celebrate the diversity of Aboriginal peoples and their ongoing cultures and connections to the lands and waters of NSW.
We pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging and acknowledge the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people that contributed to the development of this tool/resource.
We advise this resource may contain images, voices or names of deceased persons in photographs, film, audio recordings or historical content.
Please note
An Acknowledgement of Country is different to a Welcome to Country which is performed by Traditional Custodians or Aboriginal Elders to welcome visitors onto their Traditional Lands.
Getting help and support
For additional help or support, please contact us.