Incorporating First Nations culture into your event

A Welcome to Country is a formal welcome from a Traditional Custodian or First Nations person who has been given permission from Traditional Custodians. The speaker welcomes people to meet on their lands. 

Traditional Custodians will often talk about their connection and history with the area, so a Welcome to Country can be a way to connect delegates to the peoples and lands of Sydney. 

If you would like to organise a Welcome to Country it is important to give two weeks’ minimum notice. Book a Welcome through the Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council.

An Acknowledgement of Country is done by a speaker at an event – usually the first person to speak. As they open the meeting, the speaker acknowledges the lands on which they stand and pays respect to the Traditional Custodians of Country and Elders, past and present.

The speaker would acknowledge the continuation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ cultures and deep, spiritual connection with Country. Unlike a Welcome to Country, anyone can perform an Acknowledgement of Country. 

There is no specific wording but Reconciliation Australia has some suggested scripts.

A smoking ceremony is a ritual of purification and unity. In Sydney it is always performed by an Aboriginal person with specialised cultural knowledge. The ceremonial burning of specially prepared leaves cleanses an area and participants of bad spirits protects and promotes the wellbeing of visitors while they are on Country. For delegates, it can be a physical, mental, emotional and spiritual experience. Smoking ceremonies use native plants from the area where the ceremony is performed.

This makes smoking ceremonies in Sydney unique compared to others you might experience elsewhere in Australia. Contact Dreamtime SouthernX or the Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council to request these customs to share with delegates at your Sydney event.

Take your delegates to the summit of the Sydney Harbour Bridge to discover fresh perspectives on the city below, guided by an Aboriginal storyteller. BridgeClimb Sydney introduced an Aboriginal focused climb experience in 2021 called Burrawa – a local Aboriginal word meaning ‘above’ or ‘upwards’. This is a unique and unmissable 3-hour experience for delegates to immerse in Aboriginal stories and landmarks across Sydney Harbour. Burrawa offers delegates a rare opportunity to broaden their appreciation of the harbour city. Plus, a percentage of your group price is donated to Tribal Warrior.

Hop aboard a private charter of the Mari Nawi (Big Canoe) with Tribal Warrior to learn about one of the world’s most famous – and largest and deepest – harbours from its Traditional Custodians. The cultural cruise will raise delegates’ understanding and appreciation of Sydney’s rich Aboriginal heritage. 

Taking a cruise with Tribal Warrior supports their core work as an Aboriginal mentoring organisation, helping to guide and empower young Aboriginal people and their families in the Sydney community.

Bangarra Dance Theatre is Australia’s premier Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander dance company. Performances draw on 65,000+ years of cultural heritage to tell the stories of Elders and raise awareness and understanding of First Nations cultures. Bangarra consistently develops new work featuring Australia’s best professionally trained First Nations dancers and choreographers. 

Book a private performance, Welcome to Country or Smoking Ceremony for your event and adorn it with set and costume displays. The venue houses a commercial kitchen and offers four catering services. Bangarra’s dancers can also come to your event. Get in touch with them to request exclusive performances at other venues and locations around Sydney. 

Take a walking tour of Tallawoladaha (The Rocks) with an Aboriginal guide from Dreamtime SouthernX. Tallawoladaha is the Gadigal language name for the area, given thousands of years before colonisation. This experience develops understanding for Aboriginal culture while exploring an iconic harbourside neighbourhood in the heart of the city.  

Delegates get a unique insight into the spiritual connection between the area’s Traditional Custodians and the natural environment that still endures today.

Take a guided Aboriginal Bush Tucker tour or Aboriginal Harbour Heritage tour in the Botanic Gardens of Sydney. During the bush tucker tour an Aboriginal guide demonstrates how native plants were traditionally used in food and are being adapted and adopted in some of Sydney’s best restaurants today.

Groups sample bush tucker as part of the experience. Tours in the Botanic Gardens can be tailored exclusively for groups. 

International Convention Centre (ICC) Sydney has a Legacy Program which connects events held at the centre with Sydney’s community to get the most out of the occasion for both your stakeholders and the city. The First Nations stream of the program has many ways you can bring Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives and suppliers into your event to: 

• widen understanding of the long-surviving culture and its link to the land
• support Sydney’s and Australia’s First Nations people thrive through business, cultural celebration and community. 

Australia’s largest speaker bureau, Saxton Speakers, can connect you to a range of First Nations changemakers and experts keen to share their stories, wisdom and knowledge with event audiences. Speakers include: 

• Sydney Olympic gold medallist Cathy Freeman OAM
• technology, science and pop culture commentator, Rae Johnston
• science education charity founder, Corey Tutt OAM
• writer, filmmaker musician and Aboriginal fire management expert Victor Steffensen
• Aboriginal land rights activist and community leader Noel Pearson