Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander or Indigenous or First Nations refers to the Indigenous peoples of Australia. 

An Aboriginal person is descendant of the First Nations peoples of mainland Australia, while a Torres Strait Islander is descendant of the First Nations peoples of the Torres Strait Islands. 

The Creative Workplaces webpages use the terms ‘First Nations’ and ‘Indigenous’ to collectively refer to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. 

Creative Workplaces acknowledges the rich diversity of First Nations communities, clans and language groups. 

Cultural competency is about individual actions and behaviours. Being culturally competent means having the skills and knowledge to respectfully understand, engage and respond in a way that supports and values First Nations peoples, skills and perspectives. 

^{Gollan, S and K Stacey, Australian Evaluation Society First Nations Cultural Safety Framework (2021) 5; Eckermann A, Dowd T, Martin M, et al. Binang Goonj: Bridging culttures in Aboriginal health. Armidale (NSW): University of New England, 1004.}

Learn more about Cultural safety and cultural competency.

Cultural load refers to the often unacknowledged additional workload carried by First Nations peoples in the workplace, particularly when they are the only First Nations person or one of a small number. 

Cultural load includes:

• extra demands related to First Nations issues that non-First Nations colleagues do not face
• expectations to educate non-First Nations colleagues about First Nations cultures and racism, and
• the pressure to speak on behalf of all First Nations peoples.

(See: Diversity Council of Australia and Australian Public Service Commission). 

These challenges are also recognised for culturally and linguistically diverse peoples. 

On this website — We use the phrase ‘cultural load’ to align with the language used across workplace practice and in awards and agreements. However, we acknowledge that many First Nations people prefer the phrase ‘colonial load’ to avoid implying that it is culture that creates the burden. Culture and cultural knowledge is a strength.

Cultural safety is a first-hand experience for First Nations peoples. It is not something a non-First Nations person or organisation can determine—it is shaped by the experiences of First Nations peoples in each space and interaction. 

Creating cultural safety means listening, learning, and being guided by their perspectives. It is about understanding that cultural safety grows from trust, respect and accountability, and it requires reflection, openness and action. 

“A culturally safe environment [is]… where First Nations staff, peers, artists, arts organisations and communities feel their protocols, beliefs, knowledges, histories, practices and expressions are understood and valued.”

^{Inside Policy, More than Competence: Perceptions & experiences of cultural safety in the peer assessment process (Research report, Australia Council for the Arts, 2018) 10.}

Learn more about Cultural safety and cultural competency.

Cultural heritage comprises all objects, sites and knowledge – the nature or use of which has been transmitted or continues to be transmitted from generation to generation. It is a living heritage, which may be tangible or intangible, created now or in the future. 

Cultural heritage is sometimes interchangeably referred to as Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property, Traditional Knowledge and Traditional Cultural Expression.

Culture refers to the Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ holistic ways of living practiced and refined by people and communicated from generation to generation.

^{Terri Janke, Michael Frankel and Company, Our Culture: Our Future - Report on Australian Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property Rights, Report prepared for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission and the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies, Michael Frankel and Company, 1998.}

Country refers to the lands, waterways, and seas to which Aboriginal peoples are connected, and describes Aboriginal people’s ideas and understanding of law, spirituality, cultural practices, place, customs, family and identity (Credit: AIATSIS).

Discrimination happens when a person is treated unfairly, or less favourably, because of their age, race, disability, religion, sex, sexual orientation, political belief, or another attribute that is protected under the law. It can be direct or indirect. 

Learn more about Discrimination.

Elder(s) in First Nations communities, an Elder may be someone who is recognised by their community as having attained a high degree of understanding of cultural knowledge and history, spirituality, traditional language, cultural teachings, ceremonies, or healing practices. An Elder has the authority to share and pass on knowledge or give advice on cultural or community issues. 

Elders are highly respected role models and mentors and are an essential and active part of knowledge transfer and leadership.

Free, Prior and Informed Consent or FPIC is the internationally recognised standard of consent when seeking consent from First Nations people and communities the world over. This standard of consent is reflected in the UN Declaration and the Convention on Biological Diversity, 1992. Further clarity on what constitutes FPIC can be found in the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations Manual.

^{Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations, Free Prior and Informed Consent Manual (2016)}

It means that consent must be given freely, without coercion or pressure; consent must be sought with sufficient advanced notice for reasonable consideration; and consent must be based on an informed position.

Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property or ICIP refers to all aspects of First Nations peoples’ cultural heritage, including the tangible and intangible. 

Learn more about Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property.

Indigenous Data refers to any information or data about First Nations peoples, from First Nations peoples, or about cultures or Country. This includes facts, statistics, research, stories, knowledge, and records. 

Learn more about Indigenous Data.

Indigenous Data Sovereignty or IDSov refers to the right of Indigenous peoples to own and control data collected about them, their culture or their Country.

First Nations artists and creatives are likely to share something of themselves into their work – their lives, experiences and perspectives. This may include ICIP, and it may include personal and cultural information that is not communally owned ICIP but is nevertheless, their Indigenous Data. 

Racial discrimination when a person is treated less favourably, or not given the same opportunities, as others in a similar situation, because of their race, the country where they were born, their ethnic origin or their skin colour.

^{Racial Discrimination Act 1975 (Cth)}     

^{Australian Human Rights Commission, “Quick guide to discrimination law”}   

Racism can take many forms, such as jokes or comments that cause offence or hurt, name-calling or verbal abuse, harassment or intimidation, or commentary in the media or online that inflames hostility towards certain racial groups. Racism can also take the form of unfair treatment of people because of their race. Racism that is racial hatred can also be against the law. Racial hatred is doing or saying something in public, including in the workplace, based on the race, colour, national or ethnic origin of a person or group of people, which is likely to offend, insult, humiliate or intimidate. 

^{Australian Human Rights Commission, “Quick guide to discrimination law”} 

Learn more about Discrimination.

Self-determination refers to the right First Nations people have to freely determine their political status and freely pursue their economic, social and cultural development. 

^{United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, article 3} 

Self-determination means empowering First Nations people in decision-making processes. First Nations people have the right to self-determination in their artistic and cultural affairs, as well as in the expression of their cultural material.

Traditional Cultural Expression refers to the tangible and intangible forms in which traditional knowledge and cultures are expressed, communicated or manifested. 

Examples include languages, music, performances, literature, song lines, stories and other oral traditions, dance, games, mythology, rituals, customs, narratives, names and symbols, designs, visual art and crafts and architecture. 

Traditional Custodian(s) or Traditional Owner(s) terms that are often used interchangeably. 

Traditional Custodians are First Nations people or nations who have responsibilities in caring for their Country, reflecting a deeper connection and stewardship. 

The term Traditional Owner focuses more on the concept of legal ownership in a Western sense. Many First Nations people prefer Traditional Custodian as it better aligns with their cultural understanding of land connection.

Traditional Knowledge refers to the knowledge resulting from intellectual activity in a traditional context and includes know-how, practices, skills and innovations. 

Traditional Knowledge can be found in a wide variety of contexts, including agricultural knowledge, scientific knowledge, technical knowledge, ecological knowledge, medicinal knowledge, including related medicines and remedies, cosmology, and biodiversity-related knowledge. This includes knowledge about genetic resources.