Port Douglas is hosting a nationwide conference on Native Title for the next two days.

The National Native Title Conference, held at Sheraton Port Douglas, will follow a theme of ‘leadership, legacy and opportunity’ and feature high-profile speakers including Noel Pearson.

The hosting date coincides with the Laura Dance Festival, and starts off with a day of closed workshops for Indigenous peoples and native title claimants followed by two days of open workshops, which will include an Indigenous Youth forum, visits to the Mossman Gorge and its Indigenous Community, Talking Circles and more.

Speakers include prominent lawyer and Indigenous speaker Noel Pearson, Mick Gooda from the Australian Human Rights Commission and Jabalbina Yalanji Aboriginal Corporation representatives Jim Turnour and Mary-Anne Port.

The conference will also play host to a ‘Dangerous Ideas’ panel which will feature Australian Human Rights Commissioner Tim Wilson, Kimberly Regional Economic Development Enterprises head Wayne Bergmann, NAILSMA project coordinator Ricky Archer and Lisa Strelein, research director at the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies.

More than a dozen other speakers are included on the program.