Victorian Aboriginal Honour Roll
- Status:
- Opens 4 August 2025
- Who can apply:
- Individuals
Nominations will open soon for the 14th Victorian Aboriginal Honour Roll.
Do you know someone inspirational? Nominate them now to have their leadership, achievements and contribution formally recorded for future generations.
Key dates
Nominations
July 2025 - October 2025
Nominations can be made online through our nomination platform. You can also nominate someone over the phone by calling the FPSR events team on 03 9922 7160 or download the nomination form from this website once nominations open.Assessment
October 2025 - December 2025
Once the nomination period closes, nominations are reviewed for eligibility and provided to the independent community panel.Ceremony
Early May 2026
Inductees will be announced at a ceremony held in Melbourne.
Guidelines
The Honour Roll is a prestigious honour intended to recognise significant and lasting contributions of First Nations people to First Nations and/or wider communities in Victoria.
For a nominee to be eligible, they must:
- identify as a First Nations person
- live in Victoria.
For a posthumous nominee to be eligible, they must have:
- identified as a First Nations person
- lived in Victoria.
All selection criteria will be available when nominations open. Nominations will be assessed against criteria that relate to the below:
1. Inspirational role model: demonstrates qualities that inspire both First Nations and non-First Nations people in Victoria
2. Commitment to First Nations Country, culture, and lore: shows dedication to preserving and promoting First Nations traditions, culture and values
3. Community impact: has significantly influenced and contributed to the First Nations and/or wider community in Victoria
4. Leadership: demonstrates leadership within the First Nations and/or wider community in Victoria, resulting in positive change and enhanced community outcomes
5. Contribution to initiatives: involved in significant initiatives or engagements that have led to positive change and added value to the community.Where do you start?
First, check the criteria to ensure your nominee is eligible.
Our independent community panel is looking for people who demonstrate excellence in their field, make a significant contribution, and who are role models in community.
Before you start, make sure you have a high resolution photograph of the nominee to upload to the portal and the contact details for the nominee, or if you are making a posthumous nomination, the contact details for their next of kin.
You must also have the consent of the nominee to nominate them.
You can nominate someone by:
- creating a free account in the nomination platform and submitting your nomination online
- completing the paper nomination form and mailing it to the FPSR event team or
- calling the FPSR events team on 03 9922 7160.
Nomination questions
Questions will be available once nominations open in late July. There will be 5-10 questions that address the selection criteria.
Nominations close on 3 October at 11:59 pm.
Nominations are assessed by an independent panel of First Nations community members. Panel members are required to demonstrate their capacity to represent First Nations communities through an expression of interest, submitted to First Peoples - State Relations.
The panel then provides recommendations to the Minister for Treaty and First Peoples for endorsement.
The artwork associated with the Victorian Aboriginal Honour Roll was created by Mick Harding. Mick Harding is an Elder of the Taungurung people.
The blues and greens of our country
"The range of green leaves represent the diversity of Traditional Owners throughout Victoria and the shield that floats inside them represents the resilience of our people over thousands of generations that we have been here.
The concentrated line work represents our unique symbolism that we use to explain our connection to country here in Victoria. The wavy blue lines represent the ocean and inland waterways that surround and run through Victoria. The subtle arcs that run through the water bodies represent the importance of water and our relationship and responsibility to it."
Collection notice
The Department of Premier and Cabinet (the Department) is using the services of Award Force to administer nominations. The Department is responsible for ensuring that your personal information is collected, held, used, managed, shared, disclosed and stored in accordance with our privacy policy.
The Department undertakes to treat any personal information provided by you as confidential and in accordance with its obligations under the relevant privacy laws, including the Privacy and Data Protection Act 2014 (Vic) (PDP Act) and Health Records Act 2001 (Vic) (HR Act). The personal information you provide, such as your name and email address, will only be used to contact you in relation to issues directly related to that purpose. If you choose not to or cannot provide this personal information, the nomination will not be able to be progressed to the Panel for review.
By submitting a nomination, including personal information (as defined in the PDP Act or where applicable, any health information (as defined in the HR Act) provided as part of that nomination, each nominator confirms that they consent to the department collecting the personal information and for the department to disclose that personal information to the independent panel, for the purposes of conducting the awards. Each nominator confirms they consent to the department to disclose the recommended inductee's personal information to the Minister for Treaty and First Peoples for the purposes of inducting the individuals.
If you have any questions about how your personal information will be handled or would like to gain access to or withdraw your personal information, you can contact Kathryn Smith, Senior Events Coordinator, First Peoples - State Relations, Department of Premier and Cabinet, on 03 9922 8119 or fpsr.events@dpc.vic.gov.au.
Privacy statement
Consistent with Victorian Government policy and legislation, the department endorses fair information handling practices. Personal, health and sensitive information supplied will be used by the department and the selection panel for the purposes of considering nominations and recommending award recipients.
Personal information of the recommended recipients will be used by the office of the Minister for Treaty and First Peoples for the purpose of endorsing award recipients and their bursaries.
First Peoples – State Relations uses Mailchimp to contact nominators and nominees. Your email address will be added to our mailing list from the date of nomination until up to 7 days after the Honour Roll Ceremony.
Those who opt in to receiving communications from us about future events will be kept on the mailing list indefinitely. You can unsubscribe from this list at any time.
The Mailchimp Privacy Statement is available to view on the Intuit website.
Information will not be disclosed or used for any other purpose without the express consent of the person to whom the information relates, unless otherwise required or permitted by law.
Data security and ownership
The information you provide in this application will be saved in the Department’s document and grants management systems. Access to these files will be restricted to Department staff responsible for processing applications. Your draft form can be seen by Department staff but will not be viewed in detail or considered for eligibility until you have submitted it.
An independent panel is responsible for reviewing the contents of applications. If your nomination is unsuccessful, the Department will remove your data, except a record of your full name, from our document management systems. Please contact fpsr.events@dpc.vic.gov.au for further information.
Privacy policy
The Department of Premier and Cabinet Privacy Policy sets out information about how the nominator or nominee(s) may access and seek correction of their personal information or complain about a breach of their privacy, and how the department will deal with that complaint.
Full terms and conditions of entry will be available when nominations open. Please read the terms and conditions of entry before submitting your nomination. You will need to agree to these when you submit your nomination.
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