Happy New Year! First Nations honoured with Welcome to Country

Sydney has honoured the First Nations Australians of Sydney Harbour – the Gadigal, Wangal and Gamaragal clans of the Eora Nation – with a beautiful Welcome to Country ahead of the New Years Eve fireworks.

Source: AAP

Just hours before the city's fireworks display, which attracts one million spectators along the Sydney Harbour foreshore and a global audience of one billion, the City of Sydney accounced that a specially choreographed Welcome to Country would be projected on the bridge's pylons, turning the entire structure into a message of hope for 2016.

Nathan Moran, the CEO of the Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council (MLALC) said that he and the Council were "deeply honoured and overjoyed that the Sydney New Year’s Eve celebration will have a specific focus on respecting the First Nations Australians of Sydney Harbour – the Gadigal, Wangal and Gamaragal clans of the Eora Nation.

"It's in the best interests of all Australians to celebrate Australia's First Nations culture as the heart and soul of a united Australia.

"The City of Sydney involved the Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council right from the design stage of the Welcome to Country and we believe this is a template that all organisations should learn from for effectively working with First Nations people."

An image that would light up the Sydney Harbour Bridge pylons in a spectacular Welcome to Country ahead of the New Years Eve fireworks. (Graphic provided before event)

Rhoda Roberts, the creative director behind the Welcome to Country, said "This year's Sydney New Year's Eve Welcome to Country celebrates the connection that Australia’s First Peoples have with the land in a way that’s inclusive and fun."

... celebrates the connection that Australia’s First Peoples have with the land in a way that’s inclusive and fun.

Sydney's Lord Mayor, Clover Moore, said "Our theme this year is 'City of Colour' – it’s a recognition of the wonderful diversity of this city and with this powerful Welcome to Country we are celebrating the talent, culture and creativity of our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities."

The display emulated the colours of the Aboriginal flag, with red fireworks cascading like a waterfall and yellow flares against the dark night sky and structure of the bridge.

An image of how the Sydney Harbour Bridge would be lit up in a spectacular Welcome to Country ahead of the New Years Eve fireworks. (Graphic provided before event)