# First-contact letter — First Languages Australia **Status:** Draft scaffold. Not sent. **Reviewed against:** Phase 1 research report (June 2026), Section 10 — Recommended Next Actions. **Recipient rationale:** [First Languages Australia](https://www.firstlanguages.org.au/about) is the national peak body for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander language revitalisation. Approaching them first (rather than a specific language centre) lets them advise which communities have capacity, provide warm introductions, and flag communities not in a position to engage right now. Avoids cold-contacting a language community that may be navigating Sorry Business, governance transitions, or unrelated load. --- ## Subject line > Te Pā Tūwatawata (Aotearoa) — exploring whether a community-led Aboriginal / TSI language version of our data-sovereignty kit might be possible --- ## Body > Kia ora, > > My name is **Robert McCall**. I run [Te Pā Tūwatawata](https://te-pa.org), a free, open-access course on Indigenous data sovereignty — built in Aotearoa New Zealand, grounded in kaupapa Māori, and aligned with the work of Te Mana Raraunga, the CARE Principles, and the GIDA network that includes [Maiam nayri Wingara](https://www.maiamnayriwingara.org). > > The course's social-media campaign kit currently exists in six languages — te reo Māori, English, Sāmoan, Portuguese, Guaraní, and Arabic — and the obvious next neighbours are Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander language communities. Before approaching any specific language centre or community, I wanted to write to First Languages Australia first, both because you are the appropriate national peak body and because I would rather be redirected than presumptuous. > > **Three things up front:** > > 1. **Te Pā is what it is.** A free course on Indigenous data sovereignty (CARE Principles, Te Mana Raraunga, ICIP) built by a Māori-aligned Aotearoa educator. The campaign kit's current six languages exist because partner communities — Sāmoan, Lusophone, Guaraní, Arabic-speaking — actively asked to be part of it. We have not added any Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander language. I would like to ask whether that is something worth exploring with a specific community, and if so, who in your view would be the right people to talk to. > > 2. **The approach is typography-led, no figurative motifs.** Modelled on the Guaraní precedent in our kit — orthographic distinctiveness as the visual element, an ochre/earth palette as cultural acknowledgement without claiming any specific Country's visual tradition. I have read the [Sacred Wandjina case](https://www.wipo.int/en/web/wipo-magazine/articles/safeguarding-cultural-heritage-the-case-of-the-sacred-wandjina-37917) and the [ABC News dot painting investigation](https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-10-05/debate-over-aboriginal-dot-art/104422228). No AI-generated visual motifs at any stage. If a Phase 2 commissioned artist is involved, an ICIP agreement (Arts Law Centre-assisted) is drafted before any design work begins; the artist retains copyright; credit appears prominently on every card. > > 3. **No timeline pressure.** I understand this kind of work takes months and proceeds at the community's pace, not mine. Three to six months from warm first contact to publication is realistic if a partner agrees. Twelve months is not unusual. We will not display "Aboriginal language coming soon" on the site, name a specific language before consent, or commission an AI translation as a starting draft. > > **What I am asking from First Languages Australia, specifically:** > > - Your view on whether this project is the kind of thing worth a community partnership in 2026 — or whether it is not the right moment for it. > - If you think it is worth pursuing: which language centres or community organisations might have the capacity to consider it. The Phase 1 desk research recommends **Gamilaraay** (via the [Gamilaraay Yuwaalaraay Guladha](https://yuwaalaraay.com) project) as the candidate Aboriginal pilot, and **Yumplatok** via the [Torres Strait Regional Authority](https://www.tsra.gov.au) as the candidate TSI Phase 1, with **Meriam Mir** as a longer-term Phase 2 conversation. These are recommendations from someone outside the country — your reading is the one that matters. > - Whether a warm introduction from First Languages Australia is something you would be willing to make, or whether you would prefer that I approach the language centre directly with a reference to your advice. > > **What I can offer up front to any community partner:** > > - The platform (te-pa.org), the existing six-language kit as proof of concept, the design infrastructure already built. > - The framing (CARE, MnW, Te Mana Raraunga) already in place, with Australian-specific context (terra nullius, Mabo, Native Title, Stolen Generations) substituted where Māori framings do not translate. > - Translation honoraria budget — modest but real; I do not expect community-credentialled translation to be unpaid labour. > - Attribution and credit, prominent and permanent on every asset. > - No commercial use without further agreement. > - A documented right for the community partner to request removal of any asset at any stage, before or after launch. > - All of the above written into an ICIP agreement before any translation work begins. > > **Public commitment.** Because I know how easy it is for an outsider project to overpromise privately and underdeliver publicly, I have published our protocol map, the partner directory we are working from, and this outreach letter at [te-pa.org/solidarity/australia/](https://te-pa.org/solidarity/australia/). If you reply with corrections or redirections, those will be reflected on that page. > > Whether the answer is "yes, here is who you should write to", "not right now", or "this is not a project we think is appropriate" — all three are valid and I will respect any of them. > > Ngā mihi nui, > **Robert McCall** > Te Pā Tūwatawata Charitable Trust > Port Chalmers, Aotearoa New Zealand > [te-pa.org](https://te-pa.org) · [github.com/robertmccallnz/kiwi-dialectic-te-pa-minisite](https://github.com/robertmccallnz/kiwi-dialectic-te-pa-minisite) --- ## Pre-send checklist Before this letter is sent, confirm: - [ ] Translation honoraria budget figure is set internally (not in the letter, but ready if asked). The research report flagged this as essential because it is a legitimate first question a partner will raise. - [ ] The Acknowledgement of Country phrasing on `te-pa.org/solidarity/australia/` has been reviewed. - [ ] No specific Aboriginal language name appears anywhere on te-pa.org (the page recommends Gamilaraay as a candidate but does not commit to it). - [ ] The Guaraní cards on the live kit are visible and represent the typography-led approach accurately. They are the working example the letter relies on. - [ ] You are prepared to wait three to six months for a reply, or to receive no reply at all, without following up more than once. ## After-send plan - **Day 14:** If no reply, a single short polite follow-up is appropriate. One only. - **No reply after day 28:** Do not contact again. The letter has been heard, and the absence of reply is its own answer. - **Reply received:** Respond within 48 hours acknowledging receipt. Take whatever direction is given. Update [te-pa.org/solidarity/australia/](https://te-pa.org/solidarity/australia/) with any corrections. - **Redirected to a specific community:** Use that introduction. Do not skip the introduction step. Do not approach a community directly with "First Languages Australia sent me" unless that phrasing was explicitly authorised. ## Decision points the letter leaves open (for Robert to resolve before sending) 1. **Translation honoraria figure** — recommended in the Phase 1 report. Needs an internal number. 2. **Platform sustainability answer** — if asked "what happens to our translation if the site goes down?", a credible answer needs to be ready. Currently: site is hosted on Vercel from a public GitHub repo; assets are mirrored on R2; the repo can be forked and self-hosted by the community at any point; community holds a complete copy of all materials under the ICIP agreement. 3. **Whether to also write to Maiam nayri Wingara as a separate, lower-stakes first contact** — for an endorsement/acknowledgement note on the kit's landing page, distinct from a translation partnership. The research report recommends this as a parallel lower-stakes ask. --- *Drafted June 2026. Saved to `docs/outreach/first-languages-australia.md`. Public at [te-pa.org/solidarity/australia/](https://te-pa.org/solidarity/australia/#outreach-h).*