The PALS Schools Reconciliation Awards are presented annually at the Wardarnji Aboriginal Cultural Celebration. Wardarnji is held on the second last Saturday of November on the Fremantle Esplanade.

All participating schools are invited to Wardarnji where refreshments, entertainment and fun activities will be provided.

Nominated students from winning schools are invited to accept the awards. At the presentation of each award the students are given the opportunity to make a one-minute speech explaining their PALS project and how it affected them or their community.

1.     PALS Awards Prizes

Runner Up: The runner-up school in each category receives a piece of Indigenous artwork valued at approximately $500 from an emerging or established artist.

Category Winners: Category winners each receive a piece of Indigenous artwork valued at approximately $1000 from an emerging or established artist.

Troy Cook Youth Award: The winning school receives a piece of Indigenous artwork valued at approximately $500 from an emerging or established artist.

BHP Billiton Prize: This prize is awarded to the school whose project is deemed to have the most significant impact on improving relationships in their local community. The winning school receives an Indigenous artwork from an emerging or established Indigenous artist valued at approximately $1500.

To take part in the PALS awards, classes need to come up with an idea for a reconciliation project. The project can be just about anything that promotes reconciliation. In recent years we've seen everything from educational DVDs, murals and bush gardens, to the establishment of relationships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities. Check out projects from past years here.

Category winners in the Awards will be announced at the annual Wardarnji Aboriginal Cultural Celebration in mid-November with winning schools presented with artwork by some of the State’s top Indigenous artists.

Registrations for the PALS Reconciliation Awards are now open for 2008. Download a registration form and the competition terms and conditions to get your project started!

Want more information? Please contact the PALS team on 9235 8051 or click here.