WALN is keen to assist landcarers to learn more about cultural burning programs and would like feedback on what information, training or events would be useful.
During September, WALN Member Group, Gondwana Link part hosted Dean Freeman, Lead Aboriginal Fire Management Officer at ACT Parks and Conservation, and Jessica Weir from Western Sydney University on a quick visit to WA with the aim of sharing knowledge on cultural burning.
Dean leads a cultural burning program run by ACT Parks and Conservation and is a qualified Divisional Commander – able to take charge of wildfire control. He is a Wiradjuri man who has worked for decades with and within conservation and natural hazard agencies on land management and cultural heritage issues. Jessica is a social science researcher from Western Sydney University leading a project on engagement between the natural hazard sector and Aboriginal communities across southern Australia.
Jessica and Dean were originally invited to WA by the Ngadju Conservation Aboriginal Corporation in Norseman who Gondwana Link works with. With short notice on when Jessica and Dean would be arriving, additional presentations and discussions were arranged in Esperance, Nowanup, Albany and Bunbury. The presentations were all very well received with good interest and involvement from the Department of Fire and Emergency Services.
Keith Bradby, Gondwana Link CEO and WALN Chair was very impressed with the examples Dean and Jessica provided of cultural burning in the eastern states, and the work of the Indigenous Fire Network. He was also impressed that the majority of their work, particularly Dean’s fire management around Canberra, is done in conjunction with local landcare groups.
For the next two years Jessica and Dean will be working with the Cooperative Research Centre for Bushfire Management on a project to support cultural burning across southern Australia.
WALN is aware that there is a very high interest amongst WA landcare groups to learn more about both the importance of cultural burning and the techniques of cool burning (slow fire), with some already happening in places like Donnybrook, Katanning and Moore Catchment. WALN is keen to hear feedback from member groups and the wider landcare community on whether you would like further information, training or events.
Let us know what you would like and let’s get the information sharing happening across the WA Landcare Network.
Email WALN with your feedback to enquiries@landcarewa.org.au or contact us on Facebook or Twitter.
USEFUL LINKS
Find these links in our ‘Hot Topics’ Resources on the WALN website http://www.landcarewa.org.au/resources/hot-topics/cultural-burning/
ACT government Bushfire Management website
https://www.environment.act.gov.au/ACT-parks-conservation/bushfire_management
BNHCRC research project website on ‘Hazards, Culture and Indigenous Communities’
http://naturalhazardscrc.com.au/research/hazard-resilience/3397
Recent workshop paper on Cultural Burning forum
https://www.bnhcrc.com.au/publications/biblio/bnh-4738
ABC article about recent fires in Tathra and cultural burning
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-09-18/indigenous-burning-before-and-after-tathra-bushfire/10258140
Richard Flanagan speech at Garma Festival 2018
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2018/aug/05/the-world-is-being-undone-before-us-if-we-do-not-reimagine-australia-we-will-be-undone-too
ANU fire-science course
https://programsandcourses.anu.edu.au/course/ENVS3008
National policy positions on cultural burning:
COAG National Bushfire Management Strategy
https://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/research-and-publications/publications-search/national-bushfire-management-policy-statement-for-forests-and-rangelands
AFAC Council position on Prescribed Burning
https://knowledge.aidr.org.au/media/4869/national-position-on-prescribed-burning.pdf