FSC® Australia
Forest Stewardship Council®
Providing Membership,
Account Management,
Marketing and Trademark services
to New Zealand on behalf of
FSC International
Media Release: For Immediate Release
May 29th 2017: On Thursday the 25th of May 2017, the eve of Sorry Day, The Reconciliation Action Plan for FSC Australia was launched at our 11th Annual General Meeting by Indigenous leader Phil Duncan, member of the Gomeroi Nation, and with FSC Australia Chair, Pat Groenhout.
“Here within FSC our staff and members across this wonderful country called Australia, look to our future and drive innovation. Our personal journeys and those experiences help us shape our desire to share a strong vibrant cultural history that precedes colonisation”, Mr Duncan announced.
“Our commitment, as an organisation, is to embrace and integrate Aboriginal cultural values across many aspects of FSC. This commitment is interwoven throughout our RAP, and reinforces our resolve to inform and influence our key stakeholder groups and the wider world on the value we place on our relationships with the Aboriginal community.”
“A key component of this process is to ensure that Aboriginal communities and individuals have access to economic, social, environmental and conservation opportunities. If genuine access to relevant information is given to Aboriginal community and adequate explanation of the likely impacts (positive or negative) of change upon Aboriginal people is explained, then the likelihood of successful and ongoing engagement with Aboriginal communities is greatly increased.”
“Meaningful consultation with Aboriginal people relies upon demonstrating a shared understanding of Aboriginal culture and the wants, needs and aspirations of Aboriginal communities. Effective engagement of Aboriginal communities and individuals affords the opportunity for Aboriginal communities to exercise their inherent rights to advance matters of cultural significance where there has been an ongoing connection since time immemorial”, Mr Duncan explained. “The context for undertaking consultation within communities must include the components of Inclusiveness; Accessibility; Respect; and Accountability.”
FSC Australia Chair reflected on the important anniversaries that coincide the launch, “We should be immensely proud today to launch our Reconciliation Action Plan.... On 27th May 1967 Australians voted overwhelmingly to finally count indigenous Australians in the census.... It was only five years earlier, in 1962, that indigenous Australians first gained the right to vote.”
“I want to thank the members of our Indigenous Working Group – Phil Duncan, David Collard, Sue Feary and Hilary Smith – for the passion and commitment that they brought in helping us deliver this plan. I would also like to pay a special tribute to two of our former Policy Managers, Daniel Mackey and Jennifer Steinbach, for whom this was a labour of love.”
Also attended was Dr Sue Feary, an Indigenous Working Group member of FSC Australia.
As an organisation, we look forward to establishing strong relationships and partnerships that will give FSC Australia the opportunity to work collaboratively with Indigenous stakeholder groups.
FSC Australia members welcome the commitment that FSC Australia was making. As a small organisation, it has taken almost 2 years in the making two create the Innovation RAP which is a unique model that Reconciliation Australia now models other small business on.
FSC Australia now join over 100 other Australian organisations with Reconciliation Action Plans in place.
Background
About FSC Australia
FSC is a global market-based eco-label that promotes responsible management of the world’s forests through standard setting and certification of both timber and non-timber forest products.
FSC is a not-for-profit organisation governed by its members who meet every three years to vote on the direction of the organisation. The membership is divided into three chambers representing social, environmental and economic interests, with equal voting weight afforded to each chamber. FSC’s forest management standards, policies andprocedures are developed by way of consensus to ensure that environmental, social and economic needs are balanced.
FSC also drives improvement in forestry practices by encouraging the purchase of certified products across the supply chain and partnering with its membership and certificate holders, as well as businesses and communities, to promote FSC’s brand and values. FSC certification is internationally recognised as the most rigorous environmental and social standard for responsible forest management, and FSC Australia is the national office of this global organisation.
Cultural Engagement Guide
Aboriginal people attach enormous cultural and spiritual significance to the landscapes. In the Aboriginal world view, people and Country (including lands, waterways and seas) are interdependent entities that are intrinsically linked in the landscape. This means that there is no separation of nature and culture. the health and wellbeing of Aboriginal people is directly influenced by both the health of the environment and the degree to which Aboriginal people can be actively involved in caring for it.
As first people of Australia, Aboriginal people have inherent rights that were never traded or given away. These inherent rights are recognised in a wide range of International, Federal, State and Territory Government instruments that afford Aboriginal people ownership and custodial interests in Country and recognises including their unique responsibility to care for their communities, cultural landscapes, biodiversity and places of particular cultural significance.
Media Enquiries: Bill Royce +61 499 195 808
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