Ballarat's first Survival Day dawn ceremony, this Sunday, will be a moment to pause and come together as a united community.
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It begins at 5.30am at View Point on Lake Wendouree, running to about 6.30am, and will feature guest speakers from the community and a smoking ceremony.
A song by Deb Clark will conclude the event.
Organised by Ballarat's Koorie Engagement Action Group, and supported by the City of Ballarat, the event will commemorate Indigenous people who died in the frontier wars, but also celebrate the survival of Aboriginal culture and community.
"Despite colonisation, discrimination and comprehensive inequalities, we continue to practice our traditions, look after the land and make our voices heard in the public sphere. We survive," a KEAG media release states.
"This Survival Day Dawn Ceremony is a respectful and meaningful way (just as ANZAC Day Dawn Service is important to many Australians) to acknowledge people who fought for a better life for us today."
Ballarat and District Aboriginal Co-operative was involved in consultation for the event, and chief operating officer Jon Kanoa said it was a "big step forward" for Ballarat.
"It's fantastic it's been a conversation not just with Aboriginal community but also voices from our non-Aboriginal brothers and sisters as well," he said.
"It's about unity and walking together - how do we come together as a society but acknowledge we have a very dark past in this country."
He added he hoped the event would encourage more engagement and education.
"As we know, January 26 is a contentious issue for community members - people are still coming to terms with the history around it and how we can educate them about it," he said.
"As an organisation, we have member who have their own opinions, we can't speak on behalf of all members or entire Aboriginal community, but (the dawn service) is an opportunity.
"It's the first of hopefully many of these events each year that symbolise what we're trying to get across."
Mr Kanoa is optimistic that it will be embraced, even if some people in the broader community might not feel comfortable attending yet.
"There's still some work to be done, but to get the legs it's had so far, it's fantastic," he said.
"People are starting to talk about (January 26), and sitting down and having respectful conversations, inviting everyone along, to connect and unify as a society.
"Hopefully we won't see as much ignorance or ill-informed education or racism in the community because we're getting a bit more cultural education."
The City of Ballarat will hold several other events across January 26, including a citizenship ceremony at the Ballarat Town Hall at 10.30am, followed by a short ringing of the bells, then a fireworks display over Lake Wendouree at 9.30pm, where people will be invited to donate to support fire affected communities.
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