National Reconciliation Week 2026: "All In"
Queensland Teachers' Journal, Vol 131 No 4, 26 June 2026, page no15.
In 2026, the theme for National Reconciliation Week (27 May to 3 June) was “All In”, calling on all of us to reflect on how we contribute to reconciliation in our workplaces and our communities.
It was also a reminder for all Australians that reconciliation is not a spectator sport, and it should not be left up to First Nations people to carry responsibility for leading this important work.
Reconciliation in the QTU
For the QTU, our work in reconciliation is as important today as it has ever been. We are currently negotiating and consulting with employees and Reconciliation Australia about the draft of our revised Innovate Reconciliation Plan 2026-2028 (RAP), with a focus on engaging QTU employees internally in development and implementation of the key deliverables of the plan.
We celebrated the week with an employee morning tea in the QTU Brisbane office, where employees shared what reconciliation means to them personally and how their work at the QTU contributes to it.
We are also establishing an employee-only RAP working group focussed on normalising and delivering reconciliation outcomes through the core internal business functions and culture of the QTU. This work is important as it will ensure reconciliation is not simply bolted onto current work or projects, but is embedded into our organisational culture and will compliment our broader member-focussed RAP working group.
Part of this work operationally has been a commitment to include RAP deliverables as a standing item on key internal governance meetings at the QTU. We are also expanding the number of lead employees with responsibility for overseeing deliverables that fall within the areas of their responsibility or influence.
This work complements the member-facing achievements of the QTU, which have seen our cultural protocols embedded into all of our democratic structures and a historically high number of members who identify as First Nations seeking election in recent Union branch election processes — including a First Nations Delegate to each QTU Area Council.
Truthtelling in our community
Queensland and Australia has a long and challenging history. One in which many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children were forcibly removed from their families under previous government policies.
Here in Queensland those policies were particularly cruel, with many aimed at separating children from their families and then purposely separating them again after new kinships and support networks were developing in religious missions and other government institutions as part of forced labour schemes, leading to significant intergenerational trauma.
Truth-telling is a critical part of reconciliation, and one truth that is not often spoken about is that many of these young people were removed from country and then forbidden from speaking their language. This was often done under the auspices of providing them an “education”.
As part of the QTU Reconciliation journey, we will need to continue to participate in truth-telling processes. These processes are often very difficult. But it is important work and foundational to a civil society that acknowledges our past and has hopes for the future.
That future that was described in the original apology delivered in Federal Parliament in 2008 by then Prime Minister Kevin Rudd: “A future where all Australians, whatever their origins, are truly equal partners, with equal opportunities and with an equal stake in shaping the next chapter in the history of this great country, Australia”.
In some ways this message is more important now than at any time since the apology was delivered 18 years ago. This message hangs in the foyer of many of our workplaces across the state and reminds us why Reconciliation is a journey that is long and requires commitment.
Next steps
The QTU is “All In” for Reconciliation, and looks forward to sharing the impact and progress of this work as we set out to implement our revised RAP.