caring for our country

Achievements Report

Community skills, knowledge and engagement 2008 –2013

Community, Skills, Knowledge
and Engagement

The capacity and participation of Indigenous people, volunteers and community groups in protecting and managing natural resources and environmental assets has been increased through engagement and access to relevant knowledge and skills.

Table of contents

Introduction

Outcome 1
Improve urban and regional communities’ access to knowledge and skills to help them
manage natural resources sustainably and protect the environment.

Case study: Indigenous partnerships in managing natural resources in south-west Victoria

Case study: SAGE community demonstration project, New South Wales

Case study: Building biodiversity resilience and connectivity in three priority catchments, Queensland

Case study: Coordinated response to on-ground control of mimosa, Northern Territory

Case study: Mawonga Indigenous Protected Area consultation project, New South Wales

Outcome 2
Increase the engagement and participation rates of urban and regional communities in activities to manage natural resources and to help protect the environment.

Case study: Taroona foreshore native plant trial podcast and walkabout series, Tasmania

Case study: A strategic framework for biodiversity conservation, Western Australia

Case study: Moreton Bay oil spill environmental restoration program, Queensland

Case study: Volunteers protecting endangered shorebirds, New South Wales

Case study: Tasmanian Landcaring Grants program, Tasmania

Case study: Local Indigenous solutions for a global problem—ghost nets, Northern Territory
and Queensland

Outcome 3
Position all regional natural resource management organisations to deliver best-practice
landscape conservation and sustainable land use planning to communities and land managers
within their regions.

Case study: Developing collaborative multi-stakeholder partnerships to achieve landscape-scale change in the Port Phillip and Western Port region, Victoria

Case study: South East Queensland Catchments—a community partnership, Queensland

Outcome 4
Ensure the continued use, support and reinvigoration of traditional ecological knowledge to
underpin biodiversity conservation.

Case study:Supporting the recording of traditional ecological knowledge in the Torres Strait,
Queensland

Case study: Working on Country, National

Case study: Tjuwanpa Rangers, Northern Territory

Case study: Managing natural and cultural resources across the Central Land Council region,
Northern Territory

Case study: Kanyirninpa Jukurrpa Martu Ranger Program in the Western Desert, Western Australia

Case study: Reinvigorating the use of traditional knowledge in the dry tropics, Queensland

Building upon strong foundations with community engagement and awareness—Phase II Caring for our
Country 2013–2018

References

Introduction

The Caring for our Country initiative depended on successful partnerships to deliver projects and achieve outcomes and overall objectives forlong-term environmental protection. Embedded in the majority of projects was the concept of increasing Community Skills, Knowledge and Engagement (CSKE). Consultation revealed that the initiative engaged a much broader audience than previous natural resource management (NRM) programs. These audiences included urban and coastal communities, Indigenous groups, schoolchildren and young adults, community and industry groups, businesses, regional NRM organisations, non-government organisations and all levels of government. The Caring for our Country initiative evolved over time and placed increasing priority on community engagement, recognising the important role of communities in implementing on-ground work and the need to ensure that capacity was built to continue progressing environmental activities after the end of the initiative. The cross-cutting nature of this priority area meant that it was funded indirectly through projects in other priority areas, and biophysical activities were underpinned by activities to enhance community skills, knowledge and engagement. To achieve long-term environmental outcomes at a national level, investing
in people is as critical as investing in on-ground work.

Strategic outcomes assisted with guiding Caring for our Country investments that contributed to the community skills, knowledge and engagement national priority area:

  • By 2013, Caring for our Country will improve urban and regional communities’ access to knowledge and skills to manage natural resources sustainably and help protect the environment.
  • By 2013, Caring for our Country will increase the engagement and participation rates of urban and regional communities in activities to manage natural resources and help protect the environment.
  • By 2013, Caring for our Country will position all regional NRM organisations to deliver best-practice landscape conservation and sustainable land use planning to communities and land managers within their regions.
  • By 2013, Caring for our Country will ensure the continued use, support and reinvigoration of traditional ecological knowledge to underpin biodiversity conservation.

RM Consulting Group completed an independent evaluation of the community skills, knowledge and engagement outcomes that included interviews, surveys and site visits with selected project managers, regional facilitators, landholders, project participants and departmental program staff. In total, 132 groups or individuals across 44 projects were consulted (RMCG CSKE 2013). The intermediate nature of CSKE outcomes meant they were often not directly recorded by proponents. Due to the unique nature of Indigenous engagement, a separate evaluation was conducted by Urbis for the traditional ecological knowledge component of this national priority area (Urbis 2013). The extent of improved capacity and community stewardship of the land was measured by increased awareness of natural assets; increased participation in Caring for our Country activities; increased knowledge and skills; and actual attitude, behaviour and practice change.

High levels of community engagement and increased access to knowledge and skills facilitated greater capacity to protect and improve the condition of the environment in future and empowered landholders to confidently implement new practices. Participation in projects led to some shifts in attitudes and adoption of practices as participants were equipped with new knowledge. A range of unintended social and economic benefits also resulted from community engagement in the initiative, especially in small rural communities: from improved social connectivity and wellbeing to increased employability of individuals and boosts to local economies from the establishment of local industries. Stakeholder feedback indicated that there was strong support for Community Action Grants, Regional Landcare Facilitators, locally-based outposted officers, flexibility in delivery mechanisms and the opportunity to access longer-term funding to provide consistent and adequate support over longer periods of time. It was acknowledged that long-term funding must be provided because it takes time to build relationships and change practices. Furthermore, investments from Caring for our Country were often a basis for leveraging additional funding from other sources. While changing practices is generally a slow process, the Regional Landcare Facilitator program enhanced the speed and extent of practice change.

The first five years of Caring for our Country emphasised a number of important factors for successful community engagement in NRM. Most importantly, it is clear that a flexible and tailored approach is essential for each project given the diversity of projects, locations, target audiences and environmental issues. Some common principles that were crucial to engagement were the need to understand each community, offer continuous support over time, ensure participants had an appropriate mixture of skills and experience, adaptively manage projects and appropriately manage and recognise volunteers. Caring for our Country had some important legacies which are expected to generate ongoing community and environmental outcomes: instilling renewed vision and momentum for community groups; establishing new groups; empowering land managers; creating ongoing partnerships and networks; and recording and sharing information, approaches and lessons learned. Partnerships provided access to a broader supply of knowledge, skills and resources and enabled projects to be delivered in more coordinated ways at larger scales. Engaging communities in the initiative had many positive environmental outcomes, such as reduced threats to environmental values, improved condition and extent of native vegetation and habitat and improved condition of rivers, wetlands and estuaries.

“There has been a maturity of how local and regional groups work together and add value, almost despite the competitive nature of the funding model”—Chair of a regional NRM organisation.

Outcome 1

Improve urban and regional communities’ access to knowledge and skills to help them manage natural resources sustainably and protect the environment.

Building knowledge and skills is an essential component of building individual and institutional capacity in NRM to achieve environmental outcomes. Increasing access to learning opportunities is an important first step. A range of different approaches and audiences, such as Indigenous communities and land managers, farmers and fishers, were targeted for this outcome. As a result of accessing new knowledge and skills, there were some noticeable shifts in attitudes and behaviours. Many landholders in agricultural industries adopted sustainable land management practices, while many urban and coastal residents adjusted their behaviour in their homes and recreational areas to protect the environment. There is also evidence of practice change within organisations: in a Communities in Landscapes project, the New South Wales Department of Primary Industries adapted practices to manage for both biodiversity and agricultural production. Within the National Reserve System priority area, support was provided to Indigenous organisations to assist them to consider whether to declare their land as an Indigenous Protected Area. Through the sustainable farm practices national priority area, over 78000 land managers and farmers were involved in over 1300 projects to improve their knowledge and skills in managing natural resources and environmental assets. Activities included field days, workshops, on-farm demonstrations and distribution of information using traditional and electronic media. Changes in attitudes, behaviours and practices are intermediate outcomes to achieve long-term environmental outcomes.

The Caring for our Country initiative increased urban and regional community access to knowledge and skills in managing natural resources. Access was enhanced by:

  • bringing people together to share knowledge, skills and experiences
  • providing access to technical specialists
  • translating technical information into a usable format
  • providing formal education opportunities
  • recording and sharing traditional ecological knowledge
  • building partnerships and networks.

Some of the achievements for improving access to knowledge and skills included:

  • landowners committing to four years of involvement in benchmark soil testing, farm planning, agronomist mentoring and advice, soil training, and field days in a sustainable farming and soil project in north-east Victoria
  • land managers near Mackay in Queensland participated in a Reef Catchments survey to determine community perception of the condition of the O’Connell River and conservation priorities for their own properties
  • broadacre farmers attended a program of events run by the Bugs and Biology Farmer Group to learn about alternative approaches to managing soil health
  • participants were involved in a horticultural community demonstration site run by Sustainable Agriculture and Gardening Eurobodalla (SAGE)
  • in the Mangarrayi Indigenous community in the Northern Territory, cultural camps are held approximately three times a year to transfer traditional ecological and cultural knowledge between community members and generations.

Indigenous partnerships in managing natural resources in south-west Victoria

In south-west Victoria, the Glenelg Hopkins Catchment Management Authority received funding from Caring for our Country to work in partnership with the Gunditj Mirring Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation to record and implement ecological knowledge. The project was adapted over time to meet the needs of stakeholders. It strengthened existing relationships and offered opportunities to share and promote traditional and contemporary land management practices. A participatory approach was based on mutual respect between all participants and included a strong governance structure to ensure that approval of all aspects of the project was gained from the full board of the Indigenous organisation. Taking time to establish workable governance arrangements was very valuable. Traditional Owners strengthened their capacity to classify and record information and then shared knowledge with NRM agencies and individual landowners. Information was validated by academics, agencies and landholders.

There were extensive capacity-building efforts at the beginning of the project. Indigenous field officers were involved in every activity, including flora and fauna surveys, heritage works and natural resource activities. On-ground works were undertaken to preserve cultural heritage of fish traps and stone houses, while other activities restored stony rise wetlands and manna gum woodlands and controlled weeds and pest animals. An extension toolkit was developed to facilitate communication between Indigenous and non-Indigenous land managers as well as common understandings of land management. The toolkit is expected to be valuable in facilitating the ongoing cultural exchange of knowledge. The project has made a substantial contribution to regional development in south-west Victoria. It also facilitated strong linkages with the Winda Mara Aboriginal Corporation and the Budj Bim Rangers Program. Lessons learned about governance and Indigenous engagement are being shared outside the region, and the formation of relationships will be a lasting legacy
of the project.

“Farmers are very practical people—until they could see it, they weren’t convinced it would work”—project manager.

Caring for our Country funded networks of state and territory outposted officers, Regional Landcare Facilitators and the National Landcare Facilitator to support regional organisations, community groups and land managers to better manage natural resources and access knowledge and skills. The initiative supported the existing grass-roots Landcare network to create awareness of environmental stewardship and implement actions, linking local communities with governments and industry. There are over 6000 Landcare and Coastcare groups across Australia, composed of local community volunteers who undertake tangible actions such as tree planting (Landcare 2013). Regional Landcare Facilitators played a central role in maintaining continuity of contact with stakeholders and building trust and relationships in their communities. These facilitators assisted communities with accessing NRM knowledge and skills and provided accessible information and training opportunities to Landcare groups. They acted as a known contact point, which facilitated quick responses to issues and the ability to capitalise on emerging opportunities. Funding also assisted with connecting different groups together, which often requires time, effort and expenses.

Caring for our Country has supported awards and conferences in each state and territory and in 2010 and 2012 supported national Landcare conferences as an opportunity to bring Landcare, farm system and other community groups together to share information on new and innovative approaches to NRM and sustainable agriculture. Case studies and information on award nominees and winners are promoted through Landcare Australia Limited’s website.

They are also used in the Landcare In Focus lift-out that features quarterly in the Rural Press newspapers, with a distribution of over 100000 copies, to demonstrate best practice. The 2012 National Landcare Conference was attended by almost 600 delegates from across Australia and for the first time it featured live streaming of keynote speakers and panels to over 250 visitors. The #landcareconf12 Twitter hashtag was created to enhance delivery of key messages. It has encouraged more interaction and online conversation amongst Landcare stakeholders, with over 900 social media mentions.

Community participants made up the majority of conference registrations, followed by other professionals (local, state or Australian Government and industry; also including non-government organisations such as Greening Australia, Landcare Australia Limited and State Landcare Associations), regional NRM bodies (e.g. Catchment Management Authorities)
and international delegates.

The National Landcare Conference 2012 plenary sessions rated well, with speakers such as David Suzuki and the ‘Landcare to Lunchbox’ panel receiving a satisfaction rate of over 90 per cent. The session provided insights from panel members on the role that Landcare may have in responding to national and global sustainability issues centred
on the balance of sustainable food production. The ‘Landcare to Lunchbox’ session featured scientist and environmentalist Tim Flannery, Woolworths representative Andrew Hall, medical practitioner and nutritionist Carole Hungerford, farmer and National Farm Federation President Jock Laurie and food and wine personality Lyndey Milan.

SAGE community demonstration project,
New South Wales

Sustainable Agriculture and Gardening Eurobodalla (SAGE) was a community-driven initiative which received a Caring for our Country Community Action Grant to implement an innovative trial using treated effluent in food production. Small- to medium-scale landholders increased their knowledge and skills in sustainable agricultural and horticultural practices.

A success of the demonstration project was that it utilised the most effective media for the target audience
by offering a mixture of theory, practical work and social interaction through field days and workshops.

The trial methodology of organic ‘wicking beds’ was an affordable and water-efficient means for food production and was adopted by many participants. Reduced water consumption means there is now more water available in the environment for fauna and flora species and natural ecological processes.

“It is important to learn and build on what you know. You have to accept that things don’t always go to plan. You need to adequately resource a project to enable some flexibility to accommodate the unexpected.

We are in the process of documenting our experiences and the process and approach we used for engaging with Indigenous communities and getting them involved in on-ground activities. We intend to share this with our industry”—project manager, Reinforcing grassland ecological values in the Merri Valley, VIC.