What is a Welcome to Country / Acknowledgement of Country?
A Welcome to Country is given by Traditional Custodians of the land when visitors arrive or at the beginning of an event or ceremony. Protocols vary from place to place. The Welcome to Country is a formal process in which visitors recognize the Traditional Custodians of the land. It may consist of a speech, or it might include performance of a welcoming song or dance. An Acknowledgement of Country is a way in which people who are not Traditional Custodians of the land acknowledge and pay respect to the Traditional Custodians of the place where an event or ceremony is taking place. Here are some examples of how to make an Acknowledgment of Country …. • The [insert name of group organizing or hosting event] and its members would like to acknowledge the traditional owners of the lands of the [insert name of the appropriate Indigenous people e.g. Cammeraigal people] on which we gather today. We would like to pay our respects to the elders both past and present, and to all Aboriginal and To
