Reconciliation Week 2026 – Wumindjika, Shalom, Welcome with Robert Young & Colin Golvan

This National Reconciliation Week, join First Nations artist Robert Young and author Colin Golvan AM KC in conversation, as they reflect on the meaning of ‘welcome’ in both First Nations and Jewish cultures. Grounded on Bunurong Country, where Wumindjika means ‘welcome, come with purpose’, explore how ‘welcome’ is understood, practised and protected in First Nations and Jewish traditions.

Through creative, cultural and legal lenses, unpack ancient customs that continue to shape contemporary life today and explore the complexities and tensions of Country and country, from both Indigenous and Jewish migrant perspectives.

Robert Michael Young is a Gunnai, Waradjurie, Gunditjumara, Yorta Yorta, Bunurong man whose heart and spirit are for his Culture and People. He has been part of significant moments that are shifting and changing the conversations around his People, Culture and Art. Robert has worked with the AFL, Richmond FC, Cricket Australia, the Australian Open and Puma additionally, one of his sculptures is permanently installed at Melbourne Museum’s Biik Milboo Dhumba.

Colin Golvan AM KC is a King’s Counsel at the Victorian Bar, specialising in intellectual property and trade practices law. He has decades of experience in copyright protection for Indigenous arts, and was involved in the recovery of the copyright in the work of Albert Namatjira and negotiated the transfer of the copyright in the Aboriginal flag. He is the author of numerous books including The Distant Exodus (ABC Books, 1990), about post-war Jewish immigration to Australia, and Protecting Indigenous Art (Melbourne University Press, 2024).

Image: Robert Michael Young, Naroot (detail), 2025.