Media representatives are being invited to cover the Wiyi Yani U Thangani (Women’s Voices) National Summit, Australia’s most significant national gathering ever of First Nations women.

Delivered by the Australian Human Rights Commission, the Summit aims to improve Australia’s approach for advancing the rights, health, safety, wellbeing and economic opportunities of First Nations women and girls. It will be held at the National Convention Centre in Canberra on Ngunnawal and Ngambri country from 9 – 11 May 2023, with a Youth Forum preceding the Summit on 8 May 2023.

Wiyi Yani U Thangani means ‘women’s voices’ in the Bunuba language from Western Australia’s Kimberley region. The Summit is designed for First Nations women to speak on their own terms to government, policymakers and service providers about addressing issues affecting First Nations women and girls.

Over 700 delegates from across Australia will attend the Summit for three days of engaging discussion, workshops and presentations across a variety of topics. Key thematic areas include self-determination, societal healing, intergenerational wellbeing, economic justice and empowerment. There will also be a range of networking events and activities.

The Wiyi Yani U Thangani National Summit is hosted by Australia’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner June Oscar AO, and First Nations community leader Michelle Deshong.

Media Registrations

REGISTER HERE: https://events.humanitix.com/wyut-summit-media-registration
Media are invited to register their interest to attend the Summit at no-cost using the above link.
Following registration of interest, the AHRC Comms team will contact each media representative to confirm their registration as well as information about attendance and participation.
Only media that are registered via the AHRC Comms team will be able to attend the Summit.
We understand that some TV journalists do not have their crew assigned in advance and will be unable to supply the details of crew when registering. The AHRC Comms team will liaise with registered journalists to send this additional information on each day of the Summit before their arrival at the venue.
As the Summit is open only to women (including those who identify as cis, trans and non-binary), media are urged to prioritise sending journalists and camera crew who identify as women.

Program & Speakers

The Summit program is available here: https://humanrights.gov.au/about/get-involved/events/wiyi-yani-u-thangani-national-summit-we-are-change-9-11-may-2023
Details of Summit presenters, panellists and key guests are included in the program.

Access

Registered media representatives are able to attend all Summit sessions.
Camera crews are only able to attend morning and afternoon plenary sessions.
Video and audio recordings of selected sessions will be available to media 30 mins after each session.

Interviews

Media are requested to arrange interviews with presenters, panellists, delegates and other guests via the AHRC Comms team. This includes pre and post-event interviews.
Details of media conferences at the Summit with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner June Oscar AO and other key Summit participants will be announced closer to the event.

Cultural Safety

The AHRC is committed to ensuring the cultural safety of all Summit participants.
Media are asked to engage with Summit presenters, panellists, delegates and organisers in a respectful and culturally appropriate way.
To assist with this, media are requested to consult with the AHRC Comms team in relation to their engagement with presenters, panellists and delegates at the Summit.

Enquiries

events@humanrights.gov.au

Presented by:

This event is presented by the Australian Human Rights Commission.