Kullilli traditional owner Toby Adams has spent his life piecing together the past to reconnect with family and culture in Queensland's Channel Country.
That knowledge was ripped apart when his father was taken from his family and country to the Aboriginal community of Cherbourg when he was about six years old.
Young people like Mr Adams are now bringing their people, once removed by policy, back to country and are working with local councils to create a better future.
"We want to make sure that [among] our kids and all my nephews and nieces and other cousins, we've got that opportunity to make sure the future generations understand who they are as strong Aboriginal people."
Kullilli traditional owners joined forces with the Bulloo Shire Council during May by forming an official committee to work towards their aspirations and to help inform a Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP).
Traditional owner Cassandra Stevens said public acknowledgement through signage, jobs and housing on country would go a long way towards reconciliation.
"[Like] a ranger program that will enable our mob to be out on country, look after country and revive our cultural obligations and connection," she said.
A statement of commitment
Of the 77 local government areas (LGAs) throughout Queensland, only seven have formalised RAPs.
Although not compulsory, a RAP is a formal statement of commitment to reconciliation with practical plans for action.
Bulloo Shire Mayor John "Tractor" Ferguson OAM said the council was committed to creating a RAP.
"There's a lot of things happened over the years and years and [we're] trying to bring people together and make things work."
'We are kicking goals'
In Wirrarri (Birdsville), on the edge of the Simpson Desert, there are more public artworks and acknowledgements than any other town in western Queensland.
Wangkangurru Yarluyandi elder Don Rowlands AOM is the only traditional owner working as a councillor in western Queensland.
"I come from a place 30 years ago when some of the things we are able to do today would be unheard of," the Diamantina Shire councillor said.
Diamantina Shire Council is currently working with various traditional owner groups to pull together a committee to inform a RAP.
Airing an 'ugly' history
Mr Rowlands said there was a lot of work to do around the airing, and acceptance, of atrocities committed against Aboriginal people in the past, including massacres.
"I look forward to sitting around a table with people and discussing this in an honest and calm manner so we can get it out there … unload it," he said.
For Cassandra Stevens, whose father was also from the stolen generation, the word reconciliation is sometimes "hard to swallow".
"But if it means that we're all going to walk together as a united Australian people who recognise the place of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and our connection to this country and our history, I'm happy to go forward with that," she said.
More than a 'written document'
While none of the 12 outback councils across western Queensland currently have a RAP, four are working to establish a plan.
Remote Area Planning and Development Board chairperson and Longreach Regional Council Mayor Tony Rayner said councils were already doing work to increase employment, housing and economic opportunities for First Nations communities.
"It's about evidence of engagement and supporting Indigenous communities and activities that reflect a more genuine support."
In north Queensland, Charters Towers Regional Council is a step ahead by being the only rural Queensland LGA with a RAP.
"The Reflect RAP is the first step and it's an internal deep dive into our organisation … looking at where we are now and where we want to be," councillor Graham Lohman said.
