ANU National Sorry Day Address

The National Sorry Day address recorded at ANU was presented by Mr Damien Miller on Friday 26 May. This address Representing Indigenous Australia: a view from the first Indigenous Australian to be appointed as a Head of Mission overseas is part of recognising the 50th Anniversary of the 1967 Referendum and the University's celebrations for this year's Reconciliation Week.

Mr Miller speaks about the role the Australian government/DFAT plays in advancing Indigenous rights overseas & the importance of forging international links between Indigenous peoples. He will also speak about his own journey to DFAT, being the first Indigenous Ambassador and what Indigenous people bring to the department and to government more widely.

Mr Miller is a career officer with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) and has recently returned from his appointment as Ambassador to Denmark with non-resident accreditation to Norway and Iceland. Mr Miller is the first Indigenous Australian to be appointed as head of an overseas mission. Formerly he served as Counsellor and Deputy Head of Mission at the Australian Embassy in Germany and in the Australian High Commission in Malaysia.

Mr Miller holds a Graduate Diploma in Foreign Affairs and Trade from Monash University and a Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Laws from the University of New South Wales. He was selected "Aboriginal Scholar of the Year" by the National NAIDOC Committee in 1993.