Indigenous cultural and natural resource management (ICNRM) creates many environmental, social, cultural and economic benefits. The ICNRM sector has grown quickly through investment by Indigenous communities and key government departments focused on Indigenous and environmental issues. To keep growing and getting stronger, ICNRM needs more diverse funding sources. This means generating new investment for ICNRM enterprises from Indigenous organisations, the corporate sector, philanthropic and non-government organisations, and ICNRM fee-for-service customers. This research project is looking at what these potential investors might need from ICNRM agencies in order to meet their objectives. It is also showcasing how ICNRM agencies sustainably manage Australia’s cultural and natural resources.
Using Indigenous led and co-developed participatory methods, this project is supporting non-government investment in ICNRM by:
The project is enabling conversations between ICNRM investors and practitioners, aligning investor assessment needs to reduce management workload, and providing advice, tools and recommendations to guide future investment.
The research team will look at the ICNRM performance and impact requirements of four key investor groups whose support can help ICNRM enterprises expand and diversify. These investors are: Indigenous organisations, the corporate sector, philanthropic and non-government organisations and ICNRM fee-for-service customers.
Project activities
There are 4 key activities in the project:
Anticipated project products
This project assists the ICNRM sector to attract, guide and evaluate Indigenous community, corporate, philanthropic and fee-for-service investment into ICNRM enterprises. It is doing this through generating:
The project complements past research initiatives that address government investor priorities. Supporting ICNRM enterprises and their activities also contributes to wider strategic initiatives such as northern development.
This project team is Kirsten Maclean, Marcus Barber, and Taryn Kong from CSIRO, supported by an Indigenous-led Steering Committee chaired by Ricky Archer from the North Australian Indigenous Land and Sea Management Alliance and representatives from the Kimberley Land Council, the Northern Land Council, Kalan Enterprises, Kowanyama Aboriginal Land and Natural Resource Management Office, Bush Heritage Australia and the Australian Land Conservation Alliance.
Field workshop partners are Kalan Enterprises in Coen, Cape York; Larrakia Nation in Darwin; and the Kowanyama Aboriginal Land and Natural Resource Management Office (supported by Abm Elgoring Ambung, the Native Title Corporation for Kowanyama).
Key Australian Government partners are the Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment, and the National Indigenous Australians Agency.
This project is due for completion in June 2021.
Contact:
Kirsten Maclean, CSIRO
E: [email protected]
Marcus Barber, CSIRO
E: [email protected]