Senator The Hon Murray Watt, Minister for the Environment and Water
Marion Scrymgour MP, Special Envoy for Remote Communities
The first Indigenous-led Research Strategy for Kakadu National Park, setting a new standard for collaboration between Traditional Owners and scientists has been launched today.
The Kakadu Research Strategy has been developed through an Indigenous-led project completed by the National Environmental Science Program's Resilient Landscapes Hub in partnership with Parks Australia.
The 10-year strategy directs what research will be undertaken in Kakadu to protect its unique environment and culture and how that research should be conducted.
For 65,000 years the Bininj/Mungguy Traditional Owners' continuing cultural connection to the land has allowed for the development of an intimate knowledge of Country handed down over a 1,000 generations.
Ensuring Indigenous knowledge holders and the research community work closely together, the Kakadu Research Strategy will deliver enduring benefits for this extraordinary part of the world that is World Heritage-listed for both its natural and cultural values.
This Indigenous-led strategy sets a course built on collaboration and mutual respect between science and Kakadu's traditional ecological knowledge holders who belong to the oldest continuing culture on Earth.
It will position Kakadu National Park as a leading example of two-way science over the next decade.
Effective collaboration is crucial to prepare for the environmental challenges ahead, such as fire, feral animals, invasive weeds and sea level rise, which threaten Kakadu's natural environment, including plants and wildlife found nowhere else, and its cultural values, including bush-tucker species and art sites.
The Kakadu Research Strategy will guide the protection of park values while delivering benefits for Bininj/Mungguy including ensuring Indigenous custodians are guiding the research being undertaken on their land as well as providing training and employment pathways.
Quotes attributable to Minister for the Environment and Water, Murray Watt:
"I congratulate the National Environmental Science Program Bininj/Mungguy project leaders who have been instrumental in the development of the first Indigenous-led Research Strategy for Kakadu National Park.
"The strategy outlines research opportunities for the next 10 years and the benefits that research could deliver.
"It demonstrates the importance of incorporating Indigenous knowledge in planning and implementing conservation efforts on our national parks.
"The Kakadu Research Strategy ensures that by working in partnership with Traditional Owners, we achieve management outcomes that not only look after Country, but value Indigenous knowledge and culture."
Quotes attributable to Marion Scrymgour MP, Special Envoy for Remote Communities, Member for Lingiari:
"The Bininj/Mungguy Traditional Owners have been caring for Kakadu for tens of thousands of years - their knowledge of the region is unrivalled, and it is essential the Federal Government continues working with them to care for this place.
"The Kakadu Research Strategy offers a huge amount of opportunity for the local community to have agency over protecting their traditional lands and progressing scientific research. It'll create jobs, help the environment and local eco-systems, attract visitors into the region, and create a partnership that has a lasting impact on how we look after Kakadu.
"I am excited to see where this project leads, and proud to be a part of a Federal Government committed to working alongside First Nation's people on protecting their local environments."
Quotes attributable to Victor Cooper, Kakadu Traditional Owner and NESP Project Leader:
"As a Traditional Owner I'm really proud to have been one of the Bininj and Mungguy leaders of the NESP project that developed this strategy.
"I look forward to working together with researchers, Parks Australia and Bininj to protect Kakadu for future generations."
Quotes attributable to Ricky Archer, Director of National Parks:
"By building off our strong partnerships between the NESP Resilient Landscapes Hub, Park Australia and Traditional Owners, we can empower and better support the aspirations of Bininj/Mungguy from a research and cultural perspective."
