The Victorian Aboriginal Education Association Incorporated (VAEAI) with the assistance of Melbourne Convention + Visitors Bureau (MCVB) has won the right to host the World Indigenous Peoples Conference on Education (WIPCE) in 2008.

VAEAI and MCVB competed with several other organizations and countries to be the host of the auspicious WIPCE. 

Garry Kingshott, CEO, MCVB said congresses such as WIPCE strengthen Melbourne’s reputation as a great city to foster education and international collaboration.

The decision to hold the international event in Melbourne was announced at the recent 2005 conference in Hamilton, New Zealand, which attracted Indigenous people from 18 countries.

This international conference, held every 3 years, provides a forum for Indigenous people around the world to come together not only to share and learn from their experiences and promote best practice in Indigenous education policies, programs and practice but also to honour and celebrate their cultures and traditions.

4,000 delegates are expected to attend WIPCE 2008 which will take place at Melbourne & Olympic Parks from 7 to 11 December. Cultural events associated with the conference will be held at the Sidney Myer Music Bowl and sites of cultural significance to Indigenous people across Melbourne.

According to Ms Geraldine Atkinson, Chairperson of VAEAI, WIPCE is an important event for all Indigenous Australians and educators.

“WIPCE will provide us with a unique opportunity to showcase initiatives and programs from across the breadth of this continent now called Australia which have a positive impact on the educational outcomes and lives of Indigenous people. 

“We will also be able to learn about strategies and practices that have been successful for Indigenous people in a vast array of other countries.  And of course, a forum like this will enable us, as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders across all of Australia, to celebrate our culture and identity with each other and our friends and colleagues from overseas,” said Ms Atkinson.

Preparations for the conference have commenced. VAEAI in conjunction with MCVB will be working closely with many other people and organizations including: Aboriginal Education Consultative Groups, Indigenous organizations, Educational Institutions and State and Federal Governments to ensure this event is a huge success.