This report highlights the achievements of the Victorian Government and the First Peoples’ Assembly in advancing the Treaty process and preparing to embark on landmark Treaty negotiations, which are on track to commence later in 2024.

This report details the community input toward key design elements in supporting the establishment of the Truth-Telling and Healing Inquiry and the First Nations Treaty Institute.

The framework outlined in this report can be used to categorise the wide range of initiatives and events currently taking place in Australia under the heading of ‘truth-telling’. It also helps to distinguish what cannot meaningfully be described as truth-telling.

This briefing paper outlines key research findings and suggests ways in which truth-telling could be supported. It proposes a set of principles which the research indicates could enhance the power and impact of truth-telling and makes recommendations about how truth-telling could be progressed.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have long called for processes of truth-telling. Numerous community projects have emerged to reckon with our pre- and post-colonisation historical truths, however few of these initiatives have been documented. This report highlights the many different ways community truth-telling can be realised, and how these efforts contribute to reconciliation.