First Nations Engagement

Ten principles when undertaking engagement with First Nations communities (IAP2)

• Start well – At the start of an engagement activity, always share an Acknowledgement, Welcome or Statement of Country. Make it meaningful to people in the room, Country and project. 
• Early engagement - Approach First Nations communities at the earliest project planning stage. 
• Recognise diversity - Seek out diversity within the First Nations communities. Meet with groups individually. 
• Be mindful of language – Use respectful and inclusive language. This includes using English terms that may be culturally insensitive for some. 
• Cultural load – Be aware of the cultural load on First Nation team members. They carry more community expectations than others. 
• Appropriate tools - Select your techniques wisely, use the telephone, host small meetings, and carefully consider locations. 
• Relevance – Not all engagement will be relevant to all First Nations groups. Accept that some individuals or groups may not want to participate. 
• Build relationships – Approach as an ongoing relationship, not a transactional or project-by-project approach. 
• Time – Recognise that First Nations engagement takes time and build this into your program. 
• Openness – Create an openness and opportunity to share in the engagement. This may include things that are not directly related to your topic or project.