Welcome to Country – one step towards reconciliation

A Smoking Ceremony was held to mark the start of the Gisborne Recycled Water Plant upgrade.

Welcome to Country ceremonies – held across the GWW service area to recognise and respect the connection First Nations peoples have to their Country – have become integral to our work. 

GWW’s Senior First Nations Advisor, Aunty Kym Monohan, says the Welcome to Country ceremony asks permission to enter Country and cleanses the land of bad spirits. It may involve a Smoking Ceremony, a speech and singing and dancing.

“The ceremony provides reassurance, that we trust what you’re bringing onto our Country will do it good. We’re saying, we’re here and have been for a long time, this land was never ceded. But still, we want to work together towards reconciliation,” she said.

For Thomas Yan, a GWW project engineer, attending the Smoking Ceremony performed by Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung Elder Uncle Ringo Terrick to mark the start of the Gisborne Recycled Water Plant upgrade left a lasting impression. “Being generously welcomed in this ancient tradition was a moving experience. It was a privilege to cleanse our spirits and show respect to this Country,” he said.

Healing and caring for Country is an important commitment in our 2030 Strategy. That means working in respectful partnership with First Nations peoples, recognising their cultural legacy and the sustainable practices that have been healing and caring for Country for tens of thousands of years.

Welcome to Country is just one way we show our respect to the traditional custodians of the land we work on.

To learn more about the work we do with First Nations peoples and Traditional Owners of the land on which we operate, visit Our work with First Nations people.