Future Generations to Benefit from National First Nations Conference

A field of wheat being harvested on a farm near Inverleigh, some 100kms west of Melbourne, Australia, on Jan. 12, 2021. William West/AFP via Getty Images

Age-old Indigenous agriculture practices could provide ecological restoration for the nation’s land care.

It comes as the Biri Bulmba Budang National Custodians of Country Gathering will be hosted by First Nations people this week in Cairns.

The event will explore how Aboriginal culture could contribute to the region’s environmental restoration and community resilience.

Aboriginal Carbon Foundation Chairperson Barry Hunter said the Gathering aims to bring greater awareness and opportunity to broader Australia around indigenous land practices.

“People will learn firsthand how traditional ecological knowledge and governance can contribute solutions to today’s social and environmental concerns,” he said.

“The Gathering promises to be an inspiring opportunity for people to come together to share knowledge and culture.”

The Cairns event will feature sessions, presentations, and panel discussions led by Indigenous practitioners, and aims for further agricultural education about ethnobotany, Cultural Fire indicators and monitoring, tool making, art, dancing, and weaving.

Indigenous knowledge about environmental markets, economic opportunities, water, and well-being will also be available.

Landcare Supporting the Event

Over 600 attendees, including Traditional Owners and First Nations people involved in agriculture and natural resource management, corporate Australia, government agencies, and volunteer groups, including Landcare, are expected to be educated about first nations agriculture at the event next week.

Landcare Australia Chair Doug Humann AM said while many Landcare groups have long worked hand-in-hand with Traditional Owners and First Nations organisations, Landcare Australia is looking forward to “strengthening connections between First Nations people and Landcare” through supporting the National Custodians of Country Gathering.

“This important event will lead the way on how we can come together, walk together and work together with First Nations people to integrate Cultural land and sea management into Landcare practices, conservation and sustainable agriculture,” he said.

“Beyond this, by integrating First Nations’ knowledge and management perspectives, our land and sea-scapes across Australia will benefit, and our communities and future generations will be enriched.”

Indigenous Landcare Helping Fight Pest Species

The Country Gathering comes as other indigenous Landcare groups show success in controlling non-native species in Australia.

The Yinnar, Yinnar South Landcare Group’s environmental outcomes, for example, is showing encouraging results in the regeneration of native flora.

The group facilitates indigenous agricultural practices by working on public and private land to achieve habitat protection, revegetation, weed control, water quality, and increased community knowledge and awareness of the environment and its sustainability.

Their project aimed to fence out pest animals, including deer, from the newly revegetated Billy’s Creek area to increase biodiversity and contribute to a future wildlife corridor for arboreal animals and birds.

The Group plan to add tube stock to speed up the establishment of tree canopy and shade for arboreal mammals and birds, with the expectation that when canopy trees are large enough, birds will assist with spreading more seed.

Yinnar, Yinnar South Landcare Group Billy’s Creek project leader Jay Duncan said the project introduced the group to the technical side of erecting electric fences and taught us how it was done and how much it cost.

“This information will be useful to others, as the deer problem locally is getting worse, and not much seems to be being done about it. It has also bought us some time to work out how to remove feral or wandering sheep from our revegetation block,” he said.

The group is now aware that the site is home to several koalas likely to be the genetically unique Strzelecki or South Gippsland koala.

Powerful Owls and Greater Gliders have also been seen recently in the almost adjacent Morwell National Park.

As the pace of extinction of Australian native fauna accelerates, the Yinnar, Yinnar South Landcare Group said they plan to continue their work in habitat enhancement to future-proof the area from threats, including pest animals and environmental disasters.

And they are now well placed to assist Parks Victoria in teaching new volunteers to collect seeds for revegetation activities in Morwell National Park.

Given the work and funding that this project requires, the group hopes to use this undertaking to raise awareness in the local community of the positive impacts of removing pest deer from native habitats and call for further action to be taken.

Australia Plans to Sign Global Methane Pledge

Meanwhile, Australia plans to sign the Global Methane Pledge, which should see thirty percent less methane from mining and agriculture by 2030 in 105 countries.

Sustainable Agricultural Systems Professor Richard Eckard said Australia should have expected government leadership in Agriculture.

“Australia is about 70 percent export-focused, and therefore, it’s more important for farmers to know what the supply chain is setting in terms of targets rather than what the government is setting in terms of targets,” he said.

He said Rabobank and National Australia Bank (NAB) have set targets to achieve zero greenhouse gas emissions exposure in their loan portfolios by 2050.

The Australian Red Meat Industry is also on board to reduce emissions for ecological restoration, intending to be carbon neutral by 2030.