Cooking, Culture and Connection: How Reconciliation and NAIDOC Week Can Strengthen Your Team and Workplace
Monday, May 5, 2025
Every year, National Reconciliation Week (27 May–3 June) and NAIDOC Week (7–14 July) provide meaningful opportunities for Australians—both as individuals and within organisations—to reflect, engage and celebrate the cultures and contributions of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
What These Weeks Represent
Reconciliation Week marks two significant milestones: the 1967 referendum and the 1992 Mabo decision. It’s a time to explore how each of us can contribute to reconciliation, build stronger relationships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians, and commit to positive change. It’s about truth-telling, respect, and real action—not just acknowledgement.
NAIDOC Week is a national celebration of the history, culture and achievements of First Nations people. With a different theme each year, it shines a spotlight on Indigenous excellence, leadership, and resilience. It’s a time to honour and celebrate, but also to listen, learn and engage more deeply with Australia’s full story.
Why It Matters in the Workplace
For organisations, these weeks are an opportunity to foster greater cultural awareness, inclusion, and respect. The benefits go well beyond symbolism. Inclusive organisations attract and retain talent, foster collaboration, and perform better. Teams that engage with culture meaningfully become more empathetic, communicative and connected.
Creating space for real cultural experiences—beyond the standard email or morning tea—helps build understanding and strengthen internal culture. It also shows that your workplace values genuine engagement, not just token gestures.
One Way to Connect: The Cheeky Olive
That’s where The Cheeky Olive offers a unique approach. Hosted by Mark Olive, a Bundjalung man and one of Australia’s most celebrated Indigenous chefs, this immersive culinary experience brings people together in the kitchen through native ingredients, storytelling and shared laughter.
It’s not a lecture. It’s a fun, high-energy session that encourages participation, reflection, and connection—all through the universal joy of food. Mark blends culture, history and humour in a way that invites conversation and leaves a lasting impression.
Teams learn about Indigenous heritage while working side by side, preparing delicious dishes using traditional ingredients like lemon myrtle, wattleseed and bush tomato. Along the way, they hear the stories behind the food—stories of country, resilience, and culture.
A Shared Experience With Lasting Impact
Whether you’re planning something small and intimate or company-wide, participating in The Cheeky Olive is a simple but powerful way to bring Reconciliation or NAIDOC Week to life. It shows respect, sparks curiosity, and helps build teams that are more inclusive, more cohesive, and more connected.
It’s hands-on. It’s heartfelt. And it’s a reminder that culture is something to be experienced—not observed from the sidelines.
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