Indigenous youth must be involved in treaty consultations if they are to be successful, Northern Territory Treaty commissioner Mick Dodson and his deputy Ursula Raymond say.

Key points: Mick Dodson says a treaty would be a "settlement or agreement" between Indigenous Australians and the government

Mick Dodson says a treaty would be a "settlement or agreement" between Indigenous Australians and the government Deputy commissioner Ursula Raymond says it is vital that young Indigenous people are involved in the treaty process

Deputy commissioner Ursula Raymond says it is vital that young Indigenous people are involved in the treaty process Ms Raymond says she will also be encouraging women to be involved in the process

Speaking at the Garma Festival in Arnhem Land, Mr Dodson and his newly appointed deputy Ms Raymond provided an update on their two-stage treaty consultation process, which they announced earlier this year.

"Firstly, I have to consider and report on the level of interest in a treaty, what outcomes are possible and [what] it will achieve," Mr Dodson said.

He said the consultations were a frustrating but necessary measure towards developing an effective treaty framework.

"It's not my job to negotiate a treaty or treaties, that comes after I've done my job," he said.

According to Mr Dodson, a treaty would be a "settlement or an agreement" between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander nations and the government.

Treaty agreements have been influential in repairing the relationship between Indigenous people and their government overseas, but here in Australia despite years of promises on a national level, no such agreements have been reached.

In recent years, states and territories have begun their own discussions.

"In the first stage, I have to provide a report to the Chief Minister ... I then have to develop a discussion paper outlining the key issues that we need to be consulted about," Mr Dodson said.

Mr Dodson, who was appointed to the role in March, stressed the importance of not viewing treaty as singular.

"Whenever I talk about treaty, I'm talking about multiple treaties, that's what people seem to be telling me at this stage," he said.

Important for youth to be involved

Ursula Raymond says it is vital that young Indigenous Australians get involved in the treaty process. ( ABC News: Alexis Moran )

Ms Raymond stressed the importance of getting young people involved in the process.

"I think it's really important. Because treaties take a long time, it's not a simple process," she said.

Both commissioners hope to follow the example set by the Victorian Treaty Commission, where traditional owners and Aboriginal people as young as 16 can vote in candidates for the First People's Assembly, an elected body that will lead discussions.

Part of Ms Raymond's role is to engage with Aboriginal women in the NT and ensure they are well informed about the process.

"I'll be talking to the women about how we [should] engage with their young people and what age they think they should be coming into this process. And, for them to vote," she said.

Treaties not just symbolic gesture

A treaty would be a "settlement or an agreement" between Indigenous Australians and the government. ( ABC News: Michael Franchi )

The Uluru convention in 2017 also recommended a treaty-making process and the establishment of a Makarratta to oversee a process of truth telling.

Constitutional conservatives have come down hard on these proposals, but Ms Raymond said she encouraged them to further their understanding of what she called Australia's history of dispossession, genocide and the Stolen Generations.

"It's the identity of Australia, and the sooner that we can embrace that we'll be a lot better off," she said.

"There's also the truth-telling component, and people want to have that around the country.

"We can then all move together into the future and be honest and have the whole country know the truth of what happened."

The ABC understands an interim report will be submitted to the NT Chief Minister in the next 18 months to kickstart the second phase of treaty negotiations.