Indigenous People's land and sea management - restoring both nature and culture
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples (Indigenous
Peoples) are increasingly being recognised for their contributions to
ecological restoration. Indigenous cultural and identity is intrinsically
linked to connections to Country (the local environment). Country's health
is reflective of the relationships between people and the local environment.
Through the practice of cultural lore and activities Indigenous peoples
have developed Indigenous management regimes that heal and maintain healthy
country.
Many Indigenous land managers are involved in reinstating Indigenous management
practices over large tracts of Australian lands and waters from which
they have been restricted or excluded for up to two centuries.
This return of Indigenous management practice to many places - often utilizing
traditional ecological knowledge interacting with modern science - represents
a profound form of ecological restoration and rehabilitation that is achieving
cultural recovery as well as recovery of ecosystems.
Examples of returning appropriate fire regimes to the landscape:
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West Arnhem Land Fire Abatement (WALFA) Program
www.marketplace.carbonmarketinstitute.org/west-arnhem-land-fire-abatement-walfa-project/
www.natureaustralia.org.au/what-we-do/our-priorities/climate-change/climate-change-stories/working-with-indigenous-australians-for-conservation/ www.culturalsurvival.org/publications/cultural-survival-quarterly/life-countryecological-restoration-aboriginal-homelands www.publish.csiro.au/wf/pdf/WF18152 www.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1442-8903.2011.00624.x/abstract Fish River, Northern Territory, Australia - Fire Abatement Carbon Project
http://www.ilc.gov.au/Home/Our-Land-Projects/Fish-River-Fire-Project
Kimberley Ecofire
http://www.australianwildlife.org/field-updates/2015/ecofire-2015-program-underway-in-the-kimberley.aspxBunya Mountains, Queensland, Australia
http://site.emrprojectsummaries.org/2012/01/26/natural-and-cultural-resource-management-the-aspirations-of-the-traditional-custodians-of-the-bunya-mountains/Firesticks program, Northern New South Wales, Australia
http://www.firesticks.org.au/category/minyumai/Lachlan Valley, New South Wales, Australia
http://site.emrprojectsummaries.org/2012/01/26/burning-for-pasture-biodiversity-and-culture/
Examples of Aboriginal marine, freshwater and wetland management
NAILSMA, Northern Australia
https://nailsma.org.au/Lake Condah Indigenous Protected Area, Victoria
http://www.environment.gov.au/indigenous/ipa/declared/lake-condah.htmlBarkindji Maraura Elders Environment Team
http://www.finterest.com.au/fish-habitats/barkindji-river-rangers-doing-great-things-for-fish/Mungalla wetland restoration Qld
https://www.mungallaaboriginaltours.com.au/2016-07-20-04-14-12/wetlands-restoration-projectWestern Australia wetlands
https://www.water.wa.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0008/3104/35555.pdfMurray Lower Darling Rivers Indigenous Nations
https://www.mldrin.org.au/about-us/
https://www.mdba.gov.au/about-us/partnerships-engagement/aboriginal-partnerships-programs
Examples of integrated ecosystem management
Martu Living Deserts, Western Australia
https://www.natureaustralia.org.au/what-we-do/our-priorities/land-and-freshwater/land-freshwater-stories/martu-living-deserts/Aboriginal Lands Trust, South Australia
http://www.environment.gov.au/indigenous/ipa/declared/sandybore.html
Mount Chappell and Badger Islands Indigenous Protected Areas
https://maps.northwestatlas.org/files/montara/links_to_plans/TAS/TAS3_fact%20sheet-chappell-badger.pdf
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/242390828_Indigenous_Protected_Areas_in_Australia_Incorporating_Indigenous_Owned_Land_into_Australia%27s_National_System_of_Protected_Areas1