As you all know, National Reconciliation Week (NRW) is held every year from 27 May to 3 June. These dates commemorate two significant milestones in the reconciliation journey: the successful 1967 referendum and the High Court Mabo decision.
This year’s theme, ‘ Bridging Now to Next,’ urges community members to look ahead and continue moving forward, guided by past lessons. The theme calls on all Australians to step forward together and tackle the uncertainties in the reconciliation journey.
Kalkadoon woman Bree Buttenshaw has created a new artwork to commemorate the #NRW2025 theme. She took inspiration from the native plants known for regeneration after fire and thriving through adversity to symbolise the collective strength and the possibilities of renewal. The Artwork reminds us that it is time for growth, reflection, and commitment to walking together.
Talking about the theme, Reconciliation Australia CEO, Karen Mundine, highlighted,
“This year’s National Reconciliation Week theme, Bridging Now to Next, reflects the ongoing connection between past, present, and future.”
This year marks 25 years since Corroboree 2000, one of Australia’s biggest ever public demonstrations of support for reconciliation and justice for First Nations, that brought together Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and non-Indigenous leaders in a historic call for reconciliation. NRW continues that work in 2025, inviting all Australians to join in ‘Bridging Now to Next’, building a more united and respectful nation.
Reconciliation Australia recognises that one of the biggest challenges for Australia and reconciliation is ensuring that newly arrived migrants have access to information to help them understand the truth of Australia’s history and how it informs and exists in the present day.
To help these emerging migrant communities, Reconciliation Australia has once again produced National Reconciliation Week information and posters in languages other than English to contribute to a broader understanding of reconciliation across the community.
Translated resources are available for download through the link here: https://www.reconciliation.org.au/our-work/national-reconciliation-week/translated-resources/
Posters and English resources can be found here: https://www.reconciliation.org.au/our-work/national-reconciliation-week/translated-resources/
“We are committed to ensuring that culturally and linguistically diverse communities can understand more about Australia’s reconciliation movement and be better informed of our shared history. The National Reconciliation Week (NRW) 2025 resources and background information are translated into Arabic, Greek, Italian, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Korean, Punjabi, Spanish, Thai, and Vietnamese. This year we have added Assyrian, Hazaragi and Khmer. These languages reflect communities with both a high total number of speakers and significant levels of speakers with low English language proficiency. We plan to provide this information in more languages in the coming weeks”, Karen added.
We all have a role to play in reconciliation. Get ready for National Reconciliation Week 2025 by downloading and displaying the posters and resources, sharing the theme on social media, and planning how to use the theme and resources to celebrate the week in your communities.
