Our vision

VCOSS’s vision is of a society that respects and values Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as the First Peoples of this nation, and is strengthened by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories, cultures and identities.

We envisage a just and equitable Victoria, where Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have the same opportunities and quality of life as other Australians, and contribute their skills and knowledge to strengthen the community.

We recognise the dispossession, colonisation and marginalisation that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have experienced and continue to experience, and the ongoing effects and barriers to opportunity this creates.

We wish to find ways to address and make some amends for this. We further seek to recognise, learn from, celebrate and help promote the strength, diversity and resilience of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures and histories, and promote its potential to strengthen our society overall.

We believe the full potential of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities can best be realised through empowered Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities making decisions about their own futures, helping determine all policy that affects them and delivering a range of programs and services to communities. We commit to working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to help build self-determining and empowered communities.

Click the image below to view the VCOSS Reconciliation Action Plan 2018

About the artwork

The artwork Untitled by Clinton Walker is used throughout this document, including prominently on the cover.

The piece was created as part of The Torch Project, which supports Indigenous artists who are, or have recently been, incarcerated in a correctional facility in Victoria.

Post-release program participants receive the full sale value of their art. Proceeds from artwork sales for participating artists still in prison are held in trust by Corrections Victoria until their release.

You can learn more at thetorch.org.au