ANTaR is a national advocacy organisation focused specifically on the rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Working closely with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leaders and elders, the organisation provides a voice for the community to share their aspirations and concerns with the wider country. Without organisations as committed and ingrained as ANTaR, many Indigenous communities would continue to be overlooked in Australian culture, a great disservice, not only to those communities but to the entire national identity.

Common Ground is a First Nations-led not-for-profit that works to create a harmonious community that respects and acknowledges First Nations knowledge, culture and stories. Working with a range of partners, collaborators and Indigenous communities, Common Ground is focused on creating change in the education system and the justice system. The organisation draws on First Nations community, creativity and innovation, by initiating projects that bring awareness and acknowledgement to the powerful and culturally significant work of Indigenous Australians.

The First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria is a movement aimed at providing a voice to those First Nations people that have been silenced for generations. An independent and democratically elected body, the organisation represents Traditional Owners and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in Victoria. Working tirelessly to negotiate a Treaty between First Nations people and the State Government, members are helping to continue a national conversation that desperately needs to be addressed.

While it’s convenient to pretend that the forced removal of children from their families was an act of bygone times, the reality is much closer than we’d care to admit. Indigenous Australians are still coming to terms with the ongoing trauma caused by these actions and organisations such as The Healing Foundation help to rebuild lives. The National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander organisation partners with communities to address the lasting impacts of forced separation, a far-reaching issue that continues to damage families to this day.

One of the most well-known and loved First Nations focused organisations in the country, Clothing The Gaps is leading the charge in a visual way. The Victorian Aboriginal led and controlled, and the majority Aboriginal-owned social enterprise was co-founded by Laura Thompson (Gunditjmara) and Sarah Sheridan (non-Indigenous). With staple clothing items that help to fund the impactful work of the Clothing The Gaps Foundation, this enterprise not only supports the First Nations community, but the artists that define the next generation of members.