Invasion Day/Survival Day Solidarity Statement 2026

NAVA does not recognise 26 January as a day of celebration. Invasion/Survival Day marks the beginning of dispossession and the disruption of First Nations cultures, with ongoing impacts on the lives and working conditions of First Nations artists and arts workers today.

NAVA’s Board, staff, members and community are based on hundreds of sovereign nations and unceded lands throughout the continent that has become colonially known as Australia. NAVA pays our deepest respects to all Traditional Owners, Custodians, and knowledge-holders of the unceded lands on which we live, learn, and work. 

NAVA acknowledges Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the first artists and storytellers on this continent and pays respect to First Nations communities' ancestors and Elders. Sovereignty was never ceded. Always was, always will be Aboriginal land.

The NAVA team will participate in and support nationwide events, protests and fundraisers for Invasion Day/Survival Day. NAVA understands solidarity as an ongoing commitment to changing how we work, show up and contribute to creating culturally safe spaces for First Nations artists and arts workers.

We encourage the visual arts community to act in solidarity by:

• Reviewing organisational policies, commissioning processes and contracts with respect to cultural authority and consultation and Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property (ICIP).
• Investing time and resources into building genuine relationships, good channels of communication and realistic time expectations with First Nations artists and communities.
• Embedding First Nations leadership and decision-making within organisations.
• Using Code of Practice for Visual Arts, Craft and Design (the Code) as a working framework for everyday work and practice.

NAVA’s work is informed by the Code, our Reconciliation Action Plan and our First Nations Policy. These documents guide our everyday work and set clear expectations about how organisations and individuals should engage with First Nations artists and communities. This includes respecting the right to self-determination and cultural authority, upholding free, prior and informed consent, recognising and respecting ICIP, and ensuring that First Nations practitioners are properly resourced, paid and supported for their labour and cultural knowledge.

Alongside this work, NAVA continues to advocate for targeted support to address critical inequities in income and employment, build sector sustainability, and ensure the unique contributions of First Nations artists and organisations are properly valued. This includes:

• Supporting the incoming implementation of standalone Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property (ICIP) legislation, alongside a public education and compliance strategy.
• Advocating for a National First Nations Workforce Development Fund and First Nations Arts Skills and Workforce Plan to enhance sustainable employment in middle-tier jobs, leadership roles, boards, and Aboriginal advisory groups.
• Calling for the expansion of the Indigenous Visual Arts Industry Support (IVAIS) program to ensure sustainable resources for First Nations artists, arts organisations, peak bodies, and support agencies.