"As a seventh-generation Australian of British and Irish ancestry, I have a deep love for this land and for this country. I have a deep reverence for the people who have been its keepers for more than 40,000 years and am often astounded by their gracious and open-handed offers of negotiation and reconciliation. despite the foul treatment that has been theirs by my people. This moment in time marks a chance for two different cultures who call the same place home to come together and to develop a mutually enriching relationship."

Nicole Breeze

"I hope that at this point of our history, we take advantage of this opportunity to shift the rudder and redirect our country. If we fail to work through this crisis in our identity now, the same issues of reconciliation will be spoken about well into the millennium."

Tim Grey

"Now 200 years after the arrival of the white people, it is time to mend bridges. That is what reconciliation is about, as I see it. Reconciliation won't come from pointing the finger of blame - that will not change a thing."

Catherine Malligan, Australian Aboriginal