First Languages Australia was pleased to support a meeting of Western Australian language centres and programs in April.

Final planning is underway for the First Languages Australia and Language Centres National Meeting to be held on the 23rd August following the Puliima National Indigenous Languages and Technology Forum in Darwin.

First Languages Australia was delighted to partner with RNLD (the Resource Network for Linguistic Diversity) to offer a weeklong professional development training course to Young Language Champions in Melbourne in May.

In December, First Languages Australia was assisted by the Indigenous Languages and Arts team within the Department of Communications and the Arts, to facilitate a meeting of key government departments in Canberra.

Over the past two years, you may have seen hundreds of our Language Legends films broadcast on ICTV.

The Sydney Policy Lab is a new strategic project of the University of Sydney which looks to address complex local and global policy challenges.

Service Agreements have been signed with eight communities for this year’s Priority Languages Support Project which sees support given to communities to undertake crucial documentation of current speakers where no or little previous documentation has happened through a project administered by First Languages Australia, with funding provided by the Indigenous Languages and the Arts.

Recently Wanga Maya Pilbara Language Centre, the Victorian Aboriginal Corporation for Languages, Ngukurr Language Centre, Central Queensland Language Centre and the Lúrra Language and Culture Program have each been on the lookout for new staff to support the language activities happening in their regions.

Gambay: Our Interactive language map was a key feature of international presentations at Google Australian headquarters in Sydney recently.

From the welcome to all to by Yugambeh Elders, to song sessions and stories in the cultural exhibition spaces, the language of the Gold Coast was shared with the huge international audience for the Commonwealth Games.

Congratulations to the Queensland Indigenous Languages Advisory Committee and Department for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Partnerships in their collaboration toward the formal government recognition of Queensland's Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Languages.

We are looking forward in the coming months to the completion and publication of Nintiringanyi: National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Teaching and Employment Strategy.

The theme for NAIDOC 2018 is "Because of her, we can!". In tribute to all of the inspiring woman who have lead us on our language journeys, First Languages Australia has collated video clips of a selection of female Language Legends from across the country.

Once again we are partnering with ABC Education to promote our Marrin Gamu competition to schools nationally.

Continuing the collaboration between First Languages Australia and the ABC to give extensive coverage to our languages, our newest project will produce videos that tell the story behind Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander place names.

First Languages Australia is thrilled to announce an exciting collaboration with ABC TV's longstanding children's program Playschool.

First Languages Australia was pleased host a national meeting to coincide with people travelling to Queensland for the National Indigenous Languages Convention in February.

In February 2018, the Department of Communication and the Arts hosted the National Indigenous Languages Convention, bringing together language workers, industry partners, researchers, educators and government to explore how digital technologies can be used to strengthen Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages.

First Languages Australia has collated advice and expertise from the National Indigenous Languages Teaching and Employment Forum held in Adelaide in 2016 into a Draft Indigenous Languages Teaching and Employment Strategy.

First Languages Australia committee members have been invited to Canberra to meet with advisors to key government ministries in December.