Reconciliation Week 2025 asks us to reflect on the theme “Bridging Now to Next.” It invites us to stand in the moment — between the legacy of our shared history and the future we’re shaping together. This theme encourages deep listening, courageous truth-telling, meaningful allyship, and actions that support the social and emotional wellbeing (SEWB) of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

To bridge the “now” to the “next,” we must first reckon with what is. eMHPrac’s WellMob team provide training resources to build health workforce capacity to deliver culturally safe and trauma-informed care with the help of digital SEWB tools. It shifts the focus from “what’s wrong with you?” to “what happened to you? ” for a better rapport and outcomes with your First Nations clients.

Truth-telling is a cornerstone of reconciliation in Indigenous Australia — a powerful act of justice that acknowledges the true history of this land. For too long, the stories of dispossession, massacres, the Stolen Generations, and cultural erasure were silenced or rewritten. Truth-telling means recognising the deep and ongoing impacts of colonisation, and honouring the strength, survival, and sovereignty of First Nations communities. It is not about blame — it is about respect, healing, and creating a shared understanding that paves the way for real change and genuine reconciliation.

Truth-telling is not about guilt; it’s about acknowledging. It is about confronting the realities of colonisation — dispossession, massacres, forced removals and assimilation— and understanding how those events echo into today through systemic racism and discrimination. But it is also about celebrating the resilience, strength and sovereignty of First Nations peoples, at all times of the year and not just during NAIDOC or Reconciliation weeks.

This week is a chance to listen to First Nations voices. Not to speak over. Not to correct. But to witness the stories of Elders, families, colleagues and communities. Their truth is our collective inheritance.

We all need to know the truth of what has happened. And it is so much easier now, to find that out. There are many resources available to read, watch or listen to the true story of how this country’s history continues to influence health and wellbeing outcomes of First Nations peoples – see WellMob’s Impact of Colonisation linked resources.  Check out these websites:

Truth-telling – Reconciliation Australia

Browse By Theme | Towards Truth

a project by the Indigenous Law Centre and the Justice and Equity Centre

Truth-telling | Common Ground

Home – Yoorrook Justice Commission

Reconciliation Week is a great time to reflect on how we can become better allies to First Nations peoples—not just during this week, but every day. Being a good ally requires ongoing education, active listening, and a deep commitment to cultural humility.

Discover practical advice on how to show up as an ally, navigate challenges, and share the cultural load. Take a step further in your allyship journey by exploring insightful interviews, podcasts, and resources that can guide you in this ongoing process of learning and growth. How to be a good Ally – eMHprac

Allyship is about walking beside, not in front. It’s about recognising that the “bridge” can’t be built by First Nations peoples alone — it requires structural change, policy shifts, and genuine partnerships. See other resources on WellMob on Allyship.

The journey of reconciliation is as much about healing as it is about justice. For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, SEWB is deeply connected to culture, Country, community, and kinship. Colonisation disrupted these connections — and healing requires restoring them.

Support for SEWB means more than providing services — it means culturally safe, community-led approaches that value Aboriginal ways of knowing, being and doing.

It means asking:

• How can we support healing from intergenerational trauma?
• Are our services trauma-informed and culturally grounded?

• How are young people being supported to stay connected to culture?

It means broadening your depth of understanding and practical application of Trauma-informed care.

The WellMob website offers over culturally safe 500 resources. These include videos, podcasts, apps, guides and fact sheets, and offer culturally safe tools that can be used when working with clients.

Resource Sheets for Workers provide shortcuts to the best resources on key topics, such as understanding social and emotional wellbeing, healing from trauma, and understanding the impacts of colonization. These resources are especially helpful for non-Indigenous frontline workers, making it easier to build rapport with First Nations clients and explain health topics in culturally sensitive ways.

WellMob’s platform also supports workers by providing training materials to enhance cultural understanding, making it easier for all workers to provide more culturally responsive care.

Understanding and healing from trauma

Understanding the Impact of Colonisation

Understanding social and emotional wellbeing

How to be a good ally

WellMob is one of the many digital spaces that honour the power of Indigenous storytelling and knowledge sharing, helping to bridge gaps between services and community.

“Bridging Now to Next” is a reminder of the journey: reconciliation is not a destination — it’s a responsibility. It’s an ongoing commitment to justice, respect, and collective truth.

Whether you’re a First Nations person holding space for culture, a non-Indigenous ally doing the inner work, or someone finding your feet on the path towards reconciliation — your part of the story.

Let’s make sure that the next chapter is written together, with truth, integrity, and love for this land and all who come from and belong to it.