Australia Day, Survival Day: Different Histories, One Shared Future

Every year on 26 January, Australians approach the same date with different emotions, histories and expectations.

For some, Australia Day is an opportunity to celebrate their country, their communities and the opportunities Australia has provided. For many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, the date carries profound pain. Known as Survival Day, Invasion Day, or a Day of Mourning, it recalls colonisation, dispossession, and injustice, while recognising continuing culture, strength, and survival.

For people becoming Australian citizens, the day can also mark a new beginning, bringing feelings of belonging, hope and responsibility.

These experiences exist alongside one another. Understanding them takes patience, honesty and a willingness to listen.

As planning begins for 26 January 2027, Aboriginal Cultural Immersions encourages councils, community organisations, government agencies and workplaces to consider how they can bring people together through respectful, Aboriginal-led cultural engagement.

Particularly on a day that can divide communities, working together matters. Unity grows through recognising one another's experiences and taking shared responsibility for the future.

Understanding the Different Meanings of 26 January

Australia's history stretches back far beyond the arrival of the First Fleet in 1788. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have maintained living cultures, languages, knowledge systems and connections to Country for tens of thousands of years.

British colonisation brought devastating consequences for First Nations communities. Recognising those consequences is essential to understanding the country Australia has become.

The date also holds a long history of Aboriginal advocacy. On 26 January 1938, Aboriginal leaders gathered in Sydney for the Day of Mourning, calling for equality, citizenship rights and an end to discriminatory treatment.

Today, Australians continue to hold different views about the national day and whether its date should change. Those differences deserve serious consideration.

Alongside that debate, communities can work together: learning about local history, respecting Aboriginal cultural leadership, supporting cultural practitioners, and building stronger relationships.

Experience in Managing Cultural Engagement on a Sensitive Day

Aboriginal Cultural Immersions brings practical experience to this conversation through its CEO, Darrel Baird.

For seven years, Baird was responsible for booking and managing all Aboriginal performances for the NSW Department of Premier and Cabinet's 26 January program, including events at Barangaroo, Tallawoladah and the Sydney Opera House concerts.

His experience also includes coordinating Aboriginal cultural content for numerous councils across Australia, helping organisers navigate the cultural sensitivities and differing community expectations surrounding the date.

That background informs Aboriginal Cultural Immersions' approach to 26 January: working closely with the Aboriginal people involved, understanding the purpose of each gathering, and giving cultural participation the consideration it deserves.

Managing Aboriginal involvement on such a sensitive day requires communication between cultural practitioners, event organisers, government representatives and local communities. It also requires respect for the people who choose to participate and those who choose to mark the day elsewhere.

From major public performances to local council gatherings, the aim should be to create opportunities for cultural expression, reflection and connection that the participating Aboriginal practitioners help shape.

Unity Through Listening and Working Together

Coming together on 26 January can mean different things in different communities.

It might involve hearing a local Elder explain the history of Country. It might mean welcoming new citizens with an introduction to the First Peoples of their adopted homeland. It could involve attending an Aboriginal-led Survival Day gathering, sharing a cultural learning experience or supporting a community conversation.

Each offers an opportunity to move beyond assumptions and hear directly from the people whose experiences are being discussed.

Working together also means involving Aboriginal people early in planning. Their role should include shaping the purpose, content and presentation of their contribution.

This cooperation can help organisers create programs that recognise the significance of the date, respect local perspectives and give audiences a fuller understanding of the place where they have gathered.

Unity becomes meaningful when people have a voice, their experiences are heard, and their contribution helps shape what happens next.

Aboriginal Culture at the Heart of Australia's Story

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures continue through language, music, dance, art, storytelling, cultural practice and connections to Country.

For Australians whose families have lived here for generations, cultural engagement can deepen their understanding of the country they call home. For newer Australians, it can provide an introduction to the First Peoples and the continuing responsibilities associated with Country.

For Aboriginal practitioners who choose to participate, cultural programs can provide opportunities to share knowledge, exercise cultural leadership and determine how their stories are represented.

These exchanges are strongest when organisers approach cultural knowledge as professional expertise, with appropriate payment, permission and respect.

A thoughtful program gives Aboriginal voices space throughout the experience and helps audiences understand the meaning behind what is shared.

Seven Ways to Build Connection Around 26 January

1. Begin with a Welcome to Country

Where appropriate, work with an authorised Traditional Owner to arrange a Welcome to Country.

This recognises the enduring relationship between Traditional Owners and their lands and welcomes those gathering on Country. At a citizenship ceremony, it can offer a meaningful introduction to the local community and its continuing Aboriginal history.

Early discussion allows the person delivering the Welcome to help determine its format and place in the program.

2. Make Time for Cultural Reflection

A Smoking Ceremony, where culturally appropriate and authorised, can create an opportunity for reflection and connection.

Relevant cultural practitioners should guide its meaning, delivery, and audience participation. Organisers should allow the time and setting the ceremony requires, following local cultural protocols.

3. Listen to Elders and Cultural Knowledge Holders

Invite Aboriginal Elders, storytellers or cultural knowledge holders to share perspectives they wish to offer.

A facilitated conversation can help audiences learn about Country, local history, community life and the different meanings of 26 January.

Respectful listening includes accepting that some questions may be inappropriate and that personal experiences or cultural knowledge may not be available for public discussion.

4. Include Aboriginal Dance, Music and Performance

Aboriginal dance, music and culturally appropriate didgeridoo performances can share stories of Country, identity, continuity and cultural strength.

Organisers can work with performers to understand what they wish to present and how it should be introduced. Giving audiences this context helps them engage with the cultural meaning of the performance.

Aboriginal Cultural Immersion coordinates Aboriginal performances and cultural experiences for a range of community, government and organisational settings.

5. Learn Together Through Art and Cultural Workshops

Aboriginal-led art activities and cultural workshops can bring people of different ages and backgrounds together through shared learning.

Collaborative painting, storytelling and cultural demonstrations provide opportunities to ask questions, exchange ideas and connect with the artist or facilitator.

The Aboriginal practitioners leading the activity should determine the stories, designs and cultural knowledge they share, including any permissions or restrictions.

6. Connect New Citizens with First Nations History

Citizenship ceremonies mark an important commitment to Australia and its future.

A Welcome to Country, cultural presentation or associated learning activity can help new citizens understand the continuing place of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in the nation they are joining.

This can introduce a broader sense of belonging: becoming part of a multicultural country with an ancient and continuing First Nations history.

7. Continue the Relationship Throughout the Year

Relationships established around 26 January can continue through cultural learning, community projects, National Reconciliation Week, NAIDOC Week and other activities.

Ongoing cooperation gives people time to develop trust and understanding. It also allows organisations to connect their public recognition of Aboriginal culture with practical commitments and sustained engagement.

Respecting the Choice to Participate

Aboriginal people hold diverse views about 26 January. Some choose to share culture at public events. Others reserve the day for mourning, protest, remembrance, family or community gatherings.

Those choices deserve equal respect.

Organisers should discuss the nature of the event openly, including how it will be promoted, what participation involves and how Aboriginal contributions will be represented.

Participation in a cultural program should never be presented as evidence that an individual or community endorses the date of Australia Day.

Likewise, Survival Day gatherings should retain the purpose and identity determined by their Aboriginal organisers.

Working together requires space for people to decide how, when, and whether they take part.

Supporting Councils and Community Organisations

Councils and community organisations face a significant responsibility when planning around 26 January. Their communities may include people celebrating, people mourning and people seeking opportunities to learn or reflect.

Early conversations with Traditional Owners and participating Aboriginal practitioners can help organisers understand local priorities and develop an appropriate approach.

One community might choose a morning of reflection followed by separately programmed activities. Another might include cultural storytelling alongside its citizenship ceremony. A workplace might arrange an Aboriginal-led learning session in the weeks surrounding the date.

The format should reflect local circumstances and the wishes of those involved.

Aboriginal Cultural Immersions' experience with major public events and councils across Australia provides a practical foundation for helping organisations coordinate cultural participation with care and consideration.

Cultural Engagement Creates Professional Opportunities

Engaging Aboriginal artists, performers, cultural facilitators and independent businesses also creates opportunities for paid professional work.

Cultural knowledge requires expertise, preparation and responsibility. Appropriate remuneration recognises the value of that contribution.

Through its national network, Aboriginal Cultural Immersions coordinates experiences delivered by Aboriginal practitioners who determine the content they share and the opportunities they accept.

This gives organisations a way to support Aboriginal-led delivery while building relationships that can extend beyond a single event.

Working Towards 26 January 2027 and Beyond

As organisations prepare their 2027 programs, there is an opportunity to make listening, cultural recognition and cooperation central to their planning.

Aboriginal Cultural Immersions works with Aboriginal Elders, Traditional Owners, artists, performers and cultural facilitators to coordinate experiences suited to different audiences and settings.

Programs may include Welcome to Country, Smoking Ceremonies, storytelling, Aboriginal art workshops, dance, music and facilitated cultural learning, guided by local cultural authority and practitioner choice.

Each experience offers a starting point for greater understanding. The relationships built around it can help carry that understanding into everyday community and organisational life.

Different Histories, One Shared Future

Australia's future will be shaped by how its people listen, learn and work together.

That work includes acknowledging the consequences of colonisation, honouring the continuing cultures of its First Peoples and recognising the contributions of people who have made Australia their home.

Particularly on 26 January, it is valuable to approach one another with care, curiosity and a willingness to understand experiences beyond our own.

Aboriginal Cultural Immersions welcomes enquiries from councils, government agencies, community organisations and workplaces seeking respectful Aboriginal-led cultural experiences around 26 January 2027 and throughout the year.

The shared purpose is to build stronger relationships, deepen cultural understanding and help communities move forward together.

We cannot rewrite yesterday, but together we can shape tomorrow.