Government Support for Indigenous Cultural and Natural Resource Management in Australia: the Role of the Working on Country Program

• Published in: The Australian journal of social issues Vol. 45; no. 3; pp. 395 - 416
• Main Author: May, Katherine
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Sydney Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.09.2010
• Subjects: Aboriginal Australians; Australia; Biodiversity; Climate Change; Community-based conservation; Cultural heritage; Economic development; Employment; Endangered & extinct species; environmental management; Environmental policy; Government policy; Grass roots movement; Indigenous Australians; Indigenous Populations; Land tenure; Land use; Management; Native culture; Native peoples; Natural resource management; Natural Resources; Occupational Roles; Public sector; Resource Management; Water Supply; Working on Country program; Australia
• ISSN: 0157-6321; 1839-4655
• DOI: 10.1002/j.1839-4655.2010.tb00186.x

In Australia national concerns about climate change, biodiversity loss, water quantity and quality and land degradation have high priority on the government's environment agenda. With this comes the opportunity to strategically integrate Indigenous land and sea management into plans for tackling these challenges, not least because the Indigenous estate - which includes some of the most biodiverse lands in Australia - continues to increase as a result of successful land and native title claims and the declaration of more Indigenous Protected Areas. This paper explores government support for Indigenous land and sea management focusing on the Commonwealth government's Working on Country program. The paper outlines the development of formalised Indigenous cultural and natural resource management, and the emergence of the Working on Country program is discussed in the past and current policy context. The opportunities and challenges for the future of the program, and formalised Indigenous land and sea management in Australia more broadly, are outlined. To finish, a note of cautious optimism: while an expanded Working on Country program underpinned by community led priorities and aspirations has the potential to simultaneously ameliorate Indigenous poverty and ensure natural resource management occurs, this will require targeted investment and a more holistic and less sectoral approach from government.