Friends of Treaty pledge
As a national organisation founded and working on stolen lands, we recognise our responsibility to support - and when necessary defend - Treaty.
Introduction
The first Treaty with First Nations people on their sovereign lands in Australia was signed on 12 December 2025. This followed hundreds of years of advocacy for treaty, led by First Peoples in Victoria, following dispossession and genocide inflicted by colonisation. The Statewide Treaty is a fundamental agreement between First Nations people and all non-Aboriginal Victorians that must be supported – and when necessary – defended.
The preamble to the Statewide Treaty reminds us that:
“the relationship between First Peoples and the State of Victoria has been profoundly shaped by colonisation and its enduring harm. Our shared history bears the weight of injustice, dispossession, disruption of Country and acts that sought to erase First Peoples and silence cultures. The Yoorrook Justice Commission revealed how deeply this pain and trauma runs – and how it continues to shape lives, families, and communities today.”
We acknowledge the work and leadership of the Yoorrook Justice Commission – “the first formal truth-telling inquiry on these lands into historic and ongoing systemic injustices perpetrated against First Peoples through colonisation”. We acknowledge all First Peoples who shared their truths with Yoorrook.
As a national organisation founded and working on stolen lands, the Foundation for Young Australians (FYA) recognises our responsibility to support Treaty. This pledge describes how we will honour this Treaty in so-called Victoria. In doing so, we will be guided by Gellung Warl (the new body created through Treaty), Traditional Owner groups and in particular the elected Youth Voice Representatives. As a youth organisation, our actions focus especially on engaging young people, for which we are guided by our First Nations Governance Group.
1. Collaborate on Youth Voice
Support Gellung Warl’s Youth Voice, a youth advisory model, as needed. This could include staff-capacity, funding and/or office space.
2. Amplify First Nations stories told by First Nations communities through our platforms and programs
Reinforce stories and communications that come from Gellung Warl on our digital platforms and invite guest speakers from Gellung Warl to FYA to speak about Treaty, both internally and to young people in program delivery.
3. Support opportunities for Youth Capacity Building
Through partnerships and program delivery, create opportunities for capacity building such as training, letter-writing workshops, community organising, support on engaging with the media.
4. Young people and their communities around Treaty never being repealed
Engage with FYA youth networks to mobilise young people and their communities to ensure Treaty exists forever.
5. Ensure all staff, Board and Committees have a strong understanding of Treaty
Enable – and require – all FYA staff, Board and Committee members to participate in ongoing learning opportunities about Treaty, the Yoorrook Justice Commission and Gellung Warl.
6. Include Treaty education in our program design and delivery to young people
Ensure Treaty is included in the design, content, curriculum and delivery of all programs.
7. Include Treaty in FYA’s strategy and the work we do with young people
Weave supporting Treaty into our new strategy for 2027 and beyond.
8. Add actions for supporting Treaty in our workplans
Bring to life this pledge by including actions for supporting Treaty into our team and individual work plans.
9. Demonstrate our support publicly
Name our support for Treaty through our public communications and website, and through actions such as renaming meeting rooms.
How we will be accountable
We hold ourselves accountable to Gellung Warl, and will always be guided by them in our actions to support Treaty. We will particularly be guided by the leadership of the elected Youth Voice Representatives.
We will develop an action plan to outline how we will deliver the commitments we have made in this pledge. We will report on progress against the action plan internally, including to staff, the Board, and the First Nations Governance Group.
We will review this pledge and action plan in 2027 so that it remains up-to-date. As part of this, we will share publicly what actions we have taken to support Treaty, and where we need to do more work.