National Reconciliation Week is held yearly from 27 May until 3 June.

On Wednesday, 9 June 2021, the PTP Alliance held an event to recognise National Reconciliation Week, at the Ovingham Level Crossing Removal Project site compound.

A number of guests participated in the event including Jeffrey Newchurch (Uncle Jeffrey), Shouwn Oosting, Corey Turner and Jack Buckskin. Guest attendees included Tony Braxton-Smith (Chief Executive, Department for Infrastructure and Transport), Angela Evans (City of Charles Sturt Mayor), David O’Loughlin (City of Prospect Mayor), City of Charles Sturt Councillors and staff.

The PTP Alliance General Manager, Dougal Guthrie, commenced the event by thanking everyone for attending and introducing the first guest, Uncle Jeffrey. Uncle Jeffrey welcomed the group and spoke about the importance of being included in major projects from the beginning, and the connections that can be built from this engagement.

Shouwn Oosting discussed what National Reconciliation Week is and explained the importance of its start date, as it observes a significant milestone in the reconciliation journey— the 1967 Referendum.

Jack Buckskin spoke to the group about his teachings of the Kaurna language, as well as telling some entertaining stories, before a Smoking Ceremony was performed by Corey Turner and Jack played the didgeridoo.

The event concluded with a barbecue breakfast cooked by the PTP Alliance management team.

The PTP Alliance has been working on the overpass design through a collaborative design engagement process with Kaurna Elders and community representatives.

Parts of the project design acknowledges Kaurna's local story of the interconnectivity between land and sky. It describes the important relationship between ancient knowledge and the need for ongoing landscape management. This is further reflected through the public realm design.