truth-telling Archives - Reconciliation Australia

What Does First Nations Led Truth-telling Look Like?

Ben Taylor — Wed, 12 Nov 2025 01:57:17 +0000

A core principle of truth-telling is that it should always be First Nations led. This means that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and communities are the ones setting the direction and making the key decisions.

First Nations led truth-telling:

centres First Nations voices, knowledge and perspectives.
prioritises the needs and aspirations of the First Nations people of that place.
gives First Nations peoples the final say over decisions at every step in the process.

This does not mean expecting First Nations peoples to have all the answers or to do all the work of the truth-telling activity.

Fact sheet: What does First Nations led truth-telling look like?
File Size: 545KB

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Respecting and Protecting Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property

Ben Taylor — Tue, 15 Jul 2025 02:28:40 +0000

When First Nations communities share their knowledge and culture, including language, this is their Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property (ICIP). This can happen at many points in a community’s truth-telling process, including casual conversation, formal consultations, or during a truth-telling initiative or event.

It is important to understand what ICIP rights are so you can uphold and protect them for yourself and your community, for the First Nations communities that you engage with and for future generations.

These resources were developed by Reconciliation Australia and Terri Janke and Company Lawyers and Consultants. Start with the short fact sheet and delve into the guide for more information.

Fact sheet: Respecting and Protecting Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property
File Size: 784KB

Guide: Respecting and Protecting Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property
File Size: 4MB

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10 Reasons to Support Truth-telling

Ben Taylor — Tue, 15 Jul 2025 02:28:36 +0000

Truth-telling is essential for justice, reconciliation, and better outcomes for all. It supports healing and honours the strengths, contributions and resilience of First Nations peoples and communities.

There are plenty of reasons to get on board but here are 10 fundamental reasons to support truth-telling in Australia to get you started.

10 reasons to support truth-telling
File Size: 660KB

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Truth-telling: Ways for Everyone to Participate

Ben Taylor — Tue, 15 Jul 2025 02:28:32 +0000

While truth-telling should always be led by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, non-Indigenous people have an important part to play.

This guide answers common questions about how non-Indigenous people can best support truth‑tellers to deliver their knowledge and experiences in whatever way is helpful to them and their truth‑telling aspirations. Questions such as:

What are appropriate and respectful ways to be involved?
When should you step up or step back?
How can you turn truth-telling into meaningful action?

Guide – Truth-telling: Ways for Everyone to Participate
File Size: 2MB

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What is Truth-telling?

Ben Taylor — Tue, 15 Jul 2025 02:28:29 +0000

Truth-telling covers a range of activities that engage with a fuller account of Australia’s history and its ongoing impact on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

The term is used to acknowledge the historic silencing of First Nations voices and perspectives which have been persistently excluded or misrepresented in official historical accounts.

The truth-telling process aims to shift our understanding of our shared past and is fundamental to advancing reconciliation.

What is Truth-telling?
File Size: 750KB

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Coming to terms with the past? Identifying barriers and enablers to truth-telling

Alex Bleasdale — Thu, 04 Apr 2024 00:44:59 +0000

Summary

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have tirelessly advocated for truth-telling as a crucial step on Australia’s path to recognition and reconciliation.

Despite this, there is a gap in existing research about what encourages Australians to engage with truth-telling and and our shared history.

The Coming to terms with the past? Identifying barriers and enablers to truth-telling and strategies to promote historical acceptance report steps into this space, aiming to advance our understanding of:

what is truth-telling to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and non-Indigenous Australians
the key barriers to and enablers of engagement with truth-telling and First Nations histories
the implications of these findings for progressing truth-telling in community settings.

A collaborative study between Reconciliation Australia and UNSW’s Indigenous Land and Justice Research Group School of Humanities & Languages, the research sought answers through a literature review, media survey, online surveys and in-depth interviews.

Findings include important considerations for the planning and delivery of effective truth-telling initiatives; as well as uncovering what motivates First Nations and non-Indigenous people to get involved.

The full report provides an overview of all of the research’s findings. Read the full report.

The summary of the key findings compiles top-line implications from the research into a 6-page resource. Read the summary of key findings.

For further reading, please see in-depth reports on the sources that contributed to the research’s findings:

Full report

File size: 3MB

Summary of key findings

File size: 3 MB

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Recognising community truth-telling: An exploration of local truth-telling in Australia

Alex Bleasdale — Tue, 05 Sep 2023 14:01:35 +0000

Summary

The Recognising community truth-telling: An exploration of local truth-telling in Australia report is a unique collaborative study between Reconciliation Australia and Deakin University’s Alfred Deakin Institute for Citizenship and Globalisation.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have long called for processes of truth-telling. Numerous community projects have emerged to reckon with our pre and post-colonisation historical truths, however few of these initiatives have been documented.

This report highlights the many different ways community truth-telling can be realised, and how these efforts contribute to reconciliation.

The study demonstrates through case studies:

The immense perseverance of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in undertaking truth-telling, often with limited resources and support.
The significant impact community truth-telling has had in shifting the national narrative about Australia’s colonial history.
That Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities see truth-telling and acknowledgment of the past as crucial steps towards genuine reconciliation.
However, there is much more work to be done to support community truth-telling in Australia.

The report’s corresponding Policy Briefing Paper, developed by Deakin University’s Alfred Deakin Institute for Citizenship and Globalisation, summarises key findings from the report and suggests ways in which truth-telling could be supported.

Recognising community truth-telling report. File size: 3MB

Policy Briefing Paper. File size: 3 MB

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