Australians of the year Eight individuals who have made an outstanding contribution to the life of the nation, honoured not just for their extraordinary efforts but for way they have used their influence, knowledge and authority to change the world around them. Tomorrow one of these people will be awarded Australian of the Year to take over from 2015 recipient Rosie Batty.
For many Australians,   January 26 will be marked by beers, barbecues and Australian flag bikinis. 
The Triple J Hottest 100 will blare from house parties around the country and pubs will swell with punters out to celebrate a rare Tuesday off work.
For Indigenous Australians it will be a day of mourning. It marks the start of British invasion on Aboriginal lands and is an annual reminder of the many ways Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians are still being left behind.
Despite beginning to close the gap in life expectancy, indigenous men, at 69.1 years, still trail their anglo peers, at 79.7 years.
And while almost 73 per cent of non-indigenous 15 to 24-year-olds complete school to year 12, just 28.5 per cent of Indigenous young people achieve the same milestone.
Shireen Morris has worked with Aboriginal leader Noel Pearson at the Cape York Partnership for the past five years. As his main adviser on constitutional recognition, Ms Morris has focused on the need for mutual recognition.
"We've looked at other comparable western countries, liberal democracies like our own, with similar colonial histories - really, they are just miles ahead," Ms Morris said. "But for the first time, I do think we are getting really close, to the point where we are actually now ready to change the way we think about indigenous issues because finally there is political will to address the question of constitutional recognition."
In   December last year a Referendum Council was appointed to progress the recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in Australia's Constitution.
No timeline has been set for the referendum, but former Prime Minister Tony Abbott previously nominated 2017 as the potential year in which it could be held.
Until that day comes, Ms Morris said Australia could use Australia Day to better mark a national moment of recognition.
"At the moment it's very anglo-oriented. Can we rethink Australia Day? Might there be a better date, the date we bring those three parts of the nation formally together and achieve reconciliation in a formal sense?"
On Tuesday, Australia will welcome 16,209 new citizens, from 154 countries, in 391 ceremonies across the country.
They will be people like Rachel Nyiramugisha, who became an Australian citizen with her family in 2011, seeking the "democracy and liberty" Australia could offer.
The 19-year-old, who arrived in Australia in 2007 after fleeing the Congo with her family, said Australia Day means a lot to her, because it commemorates a country that celebrates for diversity.
"We are celebrating the country that has taken us in, given us a new life, literally a new life. It's a very significant day for us."
For 20-year-old Eddy Ehiozee, whose parents migrated to Australia from Nigeria,   January 26 brings a reminder of Australia's thriving multiculturalism.
"We are all Australian, no matter where we originally come from. You have to accept everyone in Australia."
Australians of the year
Eight individuals who have made an outstanding contribution to the life of the nation, honoured not just for their extraordinary efforts but for way they have used their influence, knowledge and authority to change the world around them. Tomorrow one of these people will be awarded Australian of the Year
to take over from 2015 recipient Rosie Batty.