National Reconciliation Week at Swinburne

National Reconciliation Week is a time for all Australians to learn about our shared histories, cultures, and achievements, and to explore how each of us can contribute to achieving reconciliation in Australia.

Swinburne embraces the National Reconciliation Week 2025 theme, "Bridging Now to Next," and is working to honour the past, act with purpose today, and build a future grounded in truth, respect and justice. 

At a time when Australia faces uncertainty in its reconciliation journey, this theme calls on all Australians to look ahead and step forward together, guided by past lessons.

National Sorry Day 

The Moondani Toombadool Centre hosted a National Sorry Day Service on Monday 26 May at the Indigenous Learning Circle on Swinburne’s Hawthorn Campus. National Sorry Day is a time to acknowledge the strength and resilience of Stolen Generations Survivors and reflect on the role each of us can play in the healing process for both Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and the broader Australian community. 

The service began with a traditional Welcome to Country and Smoking Ceremony conducted by Wurundjeri Elder, Uncle Colin Hunter Jnr. Following the ceremony, attendees were invited to participate in an Indigenous art workshop.

Indigenous art workshop

The Swinburne communities at the Hawthorn and Wantirna campuses took part in an Indigenous art workshops facilitated by Katie Bugden Art. 

Katie Bugden is a Kamilaroi artist who grew up on Bundjalung Country. Her work is inspired by the vibrant colours of the land she was raised on, as well as the oceans and rivers where she spent much of her childhood. She uses the medium to continue her connection to ancestors, family and country.  Katie is completing a Master of Research at Swinburne focusing on Indigenous Education. She aspires to understand the barriers teachers face implementing First Peoples’ perspectives in their classrooms.

Aunty Dot Peters AM Flowering Grasslands

The Swinburne communities at the Hawthorn and Croydon campuses took part in enrichment planting at the Aunty Dot Peters AM Flowering Grasslands.

Dean Stewart, a Wemba Wemba – Wergaia man and the designer of the eco space, shared stories and insights about the grasslands and the regeneration of the area. The space recreates an true eco-space of Indigenous flowering grasslands, reclaiming a piece of the local ecosystem on the very sites where they once thrived for millennia. It serves as a living time capsule, preserving a small but significant piece of natural landscape and biodiversity. Dean led a walkthrough of the grasslands, explaining the cultural and ecological importance of the area, highlighting the diverse vegetation, and sharing how First Nations people traditionally used these plants.

2025 Swinburne Annual Reconciliation Lecture

Melinda Cilento delivered Swinburne's Annual Reconciliation Lecture for 2025. In her thought-provoking talk, "Reconciliation Reflections – Views from a 20-Year Novice," Melinda shared valuable insights drawn from two decades of engagement with reconciliation efforts across Australia.  

Melinda Cilento is a respected economist, company director and senior executive, and is the Chief Executive of the Committee for Economic Development of Australia (CEDA).