Indigenous Australians often refer to Australia Day as Invasion Day or Survival Day, after British Captain Arthur Phillip sailed into Sydney Cove in 1788 to formally take possession of the NSW colony and raise the British flag for the first time.

Dja Dja Wurrung Clans Aboriginal Corporation chief executive Rodney Carter said that action started a cycle of trauma for Indigenous people that has continued for more than 200 years.

"Personally, I won't be celebrating on January 26," Mr Carter said.

"I don't think it's a totally unified or collective view on what Australian identity should be for the many people who have come to Australia and made it home.

"We are a diverse people but we can't put aside the power of Australia being a colony that was invaded as opposed to being settled."

Read more: City of Greater Bendigo to consider Australia Day as part of new Reconciliation Plan

There will be a number of Australia Day events across central Victoria on Sunday, including more than ten events across Greater Bendigo.

There will be barbecues, games, and citizenship ceremonies, but Mr Carter said the Dja Dja Wurrung had chosen not to be involved in any of the events.

"If people want to celebrate, that's ok," he said. "We're not opposed to other people celebrating, but we're not going to celebrate with you. They need to respect the First Nations' Peoples who can't celebrate the colonising of Australia."

Bendigo and District Aboriginal Co-operative chief executive Raylene Harradine said the day had a different mean to Indigenous Australians, which needed to be acknowleged and respected.

"Australia Day means so much to so many people," she said. "There is talk all the time about reviewing what is the best day for Australia Day.

"I think it is something we need to collectively have a say about - everyone, not just Indigenous people. There needs to be some sort of vote around it, as a democratic country."

Ms Harradine is a member of the First Peoples' Assembly of Victoria - the first democratically-elected body of Indigenous people in the state's history.

The assembly will help establish the framework for Treaty negotiations with the Victorian government.

Ms Harradine said the assembly, which met for the first time in December, could discuss changing the date of Australia Day.

"The assembly has four or five major pieces of work that we need to get through," she said.

"This may be added on. But we need to be partners in that discussion, not just the assembly, but also the mainstream community as well."

Ms Harradine said greater discussion around the origin of January 26 could also lead to better outcomes for Indigenous people.

"For me, Australia Day needs to reflect on what we've done in the past but also what we need to do in the future," she said.

"Numbers have gone up in terms of Indigenous children in out of home care and Indigenous incarceration rates.

"One thing we need to think about, particularly on Australia Day, is while it's great to see all the good and warm stuff, we don't hear enough about the hell some people are going through because of the trauma.

"We need to look at alternative ways of dealing with issues. We need to look at forward planning, not just the immediate.

"It's good to project what we're seeing, rather than just being reactive."

Ms Harradine said she too wouldn't take part in Australia Day events, unless they were run by Indigenous Australians.

"People need to celebrate when they do," she said. "I'm not one to put my views on others.

"The major thing for me is to have a community that is always considerate of one another - people need to be aware and have empathy. Not just white Australia, but everyone in the community.

"It's about coming together and having the conversation."

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City of Greater Bendigo Mayor Margaret O'Rourke said while there wouldn't be any direct involvement from the Dja Dja Wurrung people, events in the Bendigo region would have a significant focus on Indigenous perspectives.

"We encourage our community to celebrate respectfully," Cr O'Rourke said. "We believe it's a day to celebrate their way.

"There are a lot of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people who make the choice not to celebrate and we appreciate that as well."

Mount Alexander Shire Mayor Christine Henderson said there would be some involvement from Indigenous elders at Australia Day events in Castlemaine.

But she said there would also be further discussions in the coming years.

"We discussed it at our Indigenous round table," she said. "We think there is an agreement to look at the future and a way forward together.

"We acknowledge past wrongs and sufferings, but the main focus is to find a way forward."

Other local governments in the central Victorian region have noted a commitment to respecting the trauma Indigenous people experience on January 26.

"There is a significant shift in the community," Central Goldfields Shire chief executive Noel Harvey said.

"We're not only seeing that, but we're acutely aware of that. Some see it and recognise it as a day of mourning, while others mark it as a survival day.

"We acknowledge that right at the start because it does provide us an opportunity to learn about our past."

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