Published on Tuesday, 4 April 2023 at 2:37:00 PM
When to use an Acknowledgement of Country vs a Welcome to Country
Traditionally, a Welcome to Country was a ceremony undertaken by an Elder to welcome outsiders and permit them to enter their ancestral land. This ceremony is a means of offering safe passage and defining the protocols of entry. Although the protocols have changed over time, a Welcome to Country can only be delivered by a traditional custodian of the land or an Indigenous person who is authorised to welcome outsiders to their country.
An Acknowledgement of Country is a way of showing awareness of, and respect for the Traditional Custodians of the land you are on, and their long and continuing relationship with the land. Unlike a Welcome to Country, it can be delivered by a First Nations person or non-Indigenous person.
The two Acknowledgements of Country below have been created for our community by a local first nation custodian and Elder representing this region, Sandra Hill. The Acknowledgments of Country are a locally specific, culturally sensitive, and respectful way to pay respects to the traditional custodians when a gathering consists of local and regional community members.
Council have adopted these Acknowledgements to Country and welcome their use by the community.
Acknowledgement of Country - Meetings
‘We acknowledge the cultural custodians of the land on which we gather, the Pibulmun-Wadandi people. We acknowledge and support their continuing connection to the land, waterways and community. We pay our respects to members of the Aboriginal communities and their culture; and to Elders past and present, their descendants still with us today, and those who will follow in their footsteps.
Acknowledgement of Country – Emails and Written Communication
‘We acknowledge the cultural custodians of the land, the Pibulmun-Wadandi people. We acknowledge and support their continuing connection to the land, waterways and community. We pay our respects to members of the Aboriginal communities and their culture; and to Elders past and present, their descendants still with us today, and those who will follow in their footsteps.
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