News edition for 6 July 2026. Added to Nungya on 22 October 2026 as part of our retrospective news archive. Reporting reflects information available by the edition date.

A list of finalists can be read in two minutes, or it can become a much longer reading list. The second approach gives the work behind the names a chance to be seen.

Indigenous.gov.au has published the 2026 National NAIDOC Awards finalists on 6 July. The categories range from caring for Country and education to innovation, creativity and sport.

For Queensland readers, the Education category includes the Aboriginal and Islander Independent Community School, widely known as the Murri School. Ninti Training Ltd and Aunty Stephanie Armstrong are also listed in that category. The Sportsperson finalists are Caitlyn Costello, Alex Wilson and Mariah Williams.

These are finalists, not the announced winners. The report schedules the National NAIDOC Awards ceremony for 15 August, so the distinction matters when sharing congratulations or writing about the list.

Rather than trying to rank unfamiliar names from a short description, choose one category and learn more through the organisations and people themselves. An award nomination can draw attention to years of teaching, making, competing or community work that a national headline cannot fully describe.

That is the useful opportunity in today’s announcement: not only waiting for a result, but discovering some of the work already happening across the country.

Read the original report: 2026 National NAIDOC Awards finalists announced.