“Reconciliation is about working together to create outcomes that are equitable and fair for our First Nations peoples” -- Seona James, Director of Indigenous Cultural Connections
On Tuesday, the last day of National Reconciliation Week, we came together with open hearts and minds to learn about the importance of reconciliation. Staff, the Executive Team and Board members attended an insightful session by Yorta Yorta woman Seona James, Director of Indigenous Cultural Connections, in which she shared her extensive cultural knowledge.
During the introductions, our CEO Rita Butera introduced our new First Nations Board member Vicky Peters, a Dja Dja Wurrung, Yorta Yorta woman. Vicky thanked everyone for being open to learning more about the rich Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories, peoples, and cultures. She encouraged us to “stop for a moment, take a breath and become present in the room to create space for learning”.
During her keynote, Seona shared: "Reconciliation is what lives in our hearts and our minds. It's about what we all do every day. It's about respecting each other, having a standard of how we like to be treated and how we treat others-- and Mob are no different." She added: “It's about strengthening relationships and creating a nation that is built on respectful relationships with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples."
Seona shared meaningful progress that has been made during Australia’s reconciliation journey. This includes improving employment opportunities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, including in leadership positions, as well as procuring goods and services from Aboriginal organisations. These changes have had a positive impact on communities.
Seona also told us that the biggest thing we can all do to help achieve reconciliation, is to upskill and increase our knowledge about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures. Seona explained: “We need to be aware that all of us are capable of carrying the cultural load. Having cultural knowledge and cultural considerations means that we’re all sharing the load that many Aboriginal peoples carry. We always need to ask ourselves ‘how will this impact our First Nations clients?’”.
Seona James and Nicole Laurie
After Seona’s keynote, Director of Communications and Client Engagement Nicole Laurie summed up the event perfectly as being: “Full of hope and optimism for the future” and that’s certainly how it felt from the audience’s point of view. It was incredible to come together to explore how each of us can contribute to achieving reconciliation in Australia.
To learn more about our efforts towards reconciliation, as well as the progress that we have made, please visit breastscreen.org.au/RAP.
To learn more about National Reconciliation Week, please refer to this factsheet by Reconciliation Australia: National-Reconciliation-Week-factsheet.pdf