Land is of great significance to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples – but the connection we feel to country can be a difficult concept for non-Indigenous people to grasp. The living environment goes beyond physical elements, and is fundamental to our identity.

For First Nations people, “country” encompasses an interdependent relationship between an individual and their ancestral lands and seas. This reciprocal relationship between the land and people is sustained by the environment and cultural knowledge.

“The land is the mother and we are of the land; we do not own the land rather the land owns us. The land is our food, our culture, our spirit and our identity.”

When people talk about country it is spoken of like a person: we speak to country, we sing to country, we worry about country, and we long for country.

“To not know your country causes a painful disconnection, the impact of which is well documented in studies relating to health, wellbeing and life outcomes… It is this knowledge that enables me to identify who I am, who my family is, who my ancestors were and what my stories are. We are indistinguishable from our country which is why we fight so hard to hang on.”

The interdependence between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and the land is based on respect – while the land sustains and provides for the people, people manage and sustain the land through culture and ceremony. It is because of this close connection, we see that when the land is disrespected, damaged or destroyed, there are real impacts on the wellbeing of Indigenous people.

The land is a link between all aspects of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people’s existence – spirituality, culture, language, family, law and identity. Each person is entrusted with the cultural knowledge and responsibility to care for the land they identify with through kinship systems. Rather than owning land, people develop strong intimate knowledge and connection for a place that is related to them. The intimate knowledge of a place forms this strong connection that is inherent to Indigenous identity.

Land sustains Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander lives in every aspect – spiritually, physically, socially and culturally. The notion of landscape as a second skin is central to a lot of Aboriginal Art, whether it be theatre, dance, music or painting.