Representing and advocating for Traditional Owner rights and heritage

The National Native Title Council (NNTC) is the peak body representing the native title sector and Traditional Owners across Australia.

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Photo credit: Benjamin Warlngundu Ellis

Our Mission

Our mission is to champion the rights and interests of our members through proactive advocacy, meaningful networking, and skill-building opportunities. By supporting our members in developing the tools and knowledge to navigate the native title sector effectively, we elevate Traditional Owner voices to a national level.

Our work is guided by a rights-based approach rooted in best practice standards, such as the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) and Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC).

The NNTC is the secretariat for the First Nations Heritage Protection Alliance and Sea Country Alliance, the PBC Steering Group, a member of the First Nations Economic Empowerment Alliance with the Australian National University and the Coalition of the Peaks, and partner of the Mabo Centre with the University of Melbourne.

Organisation Highlights

A joint calendar with the Mabo Centre

Sector Events Calendar

Training, forums and webinars from across the native title and Traditional Owner sector — in one place, open to everyone, and open for you to add your own.

Honouring Dr Eddie Koiki Mabo

Dr Eddie Koiki Mabo’s legacy reshaped Australia, overturning the false doctrine of terra nullius and securing recognition of First Nations’ land rights.

In 1982, Eddie Koiki Mabo, James Rice, and David Passi, together with Bonita Mabo, Sam Passi, and Celuia Mapo Salee, began a decade-long legal fight for justice. Their perseverance led to the landmark 1992 High Court decision in Mabo v Queensland (No. 2), establishing the legal doctrine of native title in Australia which confirmed that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have enduring rights to their lands and waters. This historic ruling dismantled the lie that Australia was "nobody’s land," laying the foundation for Native Title and empowering Traditional Owners to reclaim and protect Country.

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Portrait of Dr Eddie Koiki Mabo

Photo credit: Bethyl Mabo, AIATSIS

Mabo’s courage and determination continues to inspire generations. The NNTC proudly carries his legacy forward, advocating for land, sea, and cultural justice for First Nations peoples across Australia.