A timeline of the Victorian Aboriginal Heritage Council history
18 October
Council meets for the first time
9 March
Council receives its first RAP (RAP) application - by the end of that year Council had received 22 RAP applications
28 May
Aboriginal Heritage Act 2006 comes into effect and Council is formed
28 May
Council appoints Victoria’s first Registered Aboriginal Party (RAP) – Gunditj Mirring Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation
14 September
Council appoints Barengi Gadjin Land Council Aboriginal Corporation, Martang Pty. Ltd. and Yorta Yorta National Aboriginal Corporation as RAPs
23 May
Council appoints Gunaikurnai Land and Waters Aboriginal Corporation as a RAP
5 August
Council launches its first Strategic Plan 2008-2011
22 August
Council appoints Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Cultural Heritage Aboriginal Corporation as a RAP
19 September
Council appoints Dja Dja Wurrung Clans Aboriginal Corporation as a RAP
21 May
Council appoints Wathaurung Aboriginal Corporation as a RAP
16 July
Council appoints Taungurung Land and Waters Council Aboriginal Corporation as a RAP
14 October
Council helps develop and launch the Certificate IV in Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Management
10 November
Council invites all RAPs to participate in the very first RAP Forum to facilitate interaction and spread experiences and best practice
4 February
Council and the Heritage Council of Victoria launch the Framework of Historical Themes to promote understanding of Victoria’s complex history
9 September
Council helps develop and welcomes the Traditional Owner Settlement Bill 2010 that advocates for a system that achieves land justice for Victorian Traditional Owners
16 February
Council welcomes the Parliamentary Inquiry into the Establishment and Effectiveness of RAPs
26 May
Council launches its second Strategic Plan 2011-2014
November
The Parliamentary Inquiry into the Establishment and Effectiveness of RAPs releases its findings recommending better legislative recognition of the primacy of Traditional Owners
March
Council releases Bringing our Ancestors Home: Managing and returning Ancestral Remains in Victoria since the commencement of the Aboriginal Heritage Act 2006 for comment
14 May
In responding to the Parliamentary Inquiry into the Establishment and Effectiveness of RAPs the Government acknowledges the primacy of Traditional Owners in cultural heritage protection and management
September
Council establishes a Joint Steering Group with the then Office of Aboriginal Affairs Victoria and holds a series of five regional consultation meetings during 2014 and 2015
5 December
Council appoints Eastern Maar Aboriginal Corporation as a RAP
July
Council publishes its recommendations for change regarding the return of Ancestral Remains Bringing Our Ancestors Home: We will not be well until this is done
8 September
Council publishes its third Strategic Plan 2014-2019
22 March
The Aboriginal Heritage Amendment Bill passes in Parliament giving Council greater responsibilities for the protection and management of Aboriginal cultural heritage
1 August
Council’s new functions and powers following amendments to the Aboriginal Heritage Act 2006, come into effect
28 September
Justice Bell of the Supreme Court hands down his decision in the matter of Gunaikurnai Land and Waters Aboriginal Corporation v the Council, upholding the Council's decision and describing its decision making as “scrupulous”
May
Council celebrates its 10-year anniversary with more than 70 stakeholders at a panel discussion and forum held at the State Library of Victoria
19 July
Council appoints Bunurong Land Council Aboriginal Corporation as a RAP
September
Council launches its fourth Strategic Plan 2017-2021, incorporating its new responsibilities under the 2016 amendments to the Aboriginal Heritage Act
May
Council is invited to attend a meeting, and become a permanent member, of the Heritage Chairs and Officials of Australia and New Zealand
31 July
Council receives reports of all Aboriginal Ancestral Remains held by Universities and Public Entities
September
Council launches its website
5 December
Council appoints First People of the Millewa Mallee Aboriginal Corporation as a RAP
12 February
Justice Bell of the Supreme Court hands down his decision in the matter of Briggs v the Council, upholding the Council's registration of the Bunurong Land Council Aboriginal Corporation and noting that Council had “emphasised the importance of recognising as a RAP a single organisation capable of representing, and effectively representing in fact, all Bunurong People and Traditional Owners.”
11 July
Council’s Our Languages Matter program of workshops, to encourage greater use of Aboriginal language in place naming, was awarded a prestigious Good Design Award ‘Tick’ trophy
1 August
Registration of Martang Pty. Ltd., as a RAP, is revoked under section 156(2)(a) of the Aboriginal Heritage Act 2006
24 June
Council publishes Taking Control of Our Heritage - a Discussion Paper on legislative reform of the Aboriginal Heritage Act 2006
Updated