Indigenous students from across the Wet Tropics region can apply for a grant to help with studies and future employment opportunities in environmental and agricultural fields.

Terrain NRM’s Natural Capital Fund Indigenous Education Bursary Program is open to students doing university or TAFE courses focused on the environment, agriculture, natural resource management, conservation or sustainable development.

Ty’a Dynevor and Kayoko Yamashita received $3000 grants through the fund in recent years.

“I’d gone from working full-time on Thursday Island to being a full-time student as a single parent in Cairns so getting one of these grants meant a lot,’’ Kayoko says.  “I could buy the equipment I needed for my practicals. It felt like it took financial pressures off my shoulders.”

Kayoko is studying Environmental Management and Science at James Cook University.

“Never give up – just go for it”

Another of the university’s students, Ty’a (pictured) is completing a Bachelor of Science, majoring in Zoology and Ecology.

She has this advice for others: “My Dad’s motto was ‘Never give up. Just go for it’. If you are experiencing financial stress and difficulties and you need an extra bit of money to support yourself in your studies, this is a great bursary fund and opportunity for you. I’ve also appreciated how Terrain keeps in touch with me for potential future opportunities, like internships and workshops in the region.”

Terrain NRM’s Natural Capital Fund Chair Pete Faulkner said the bursary program, now in its fifth year, is all about encouraging more Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders to become future leaders in natural resource management.

Australia is the only country in the world that doesn’t formally recognise its Indigenous people in the constitution. It’s time to put that right. The Voice referendum at the end of the year is an opportunity to vote for positive change that will move us further along the path towards genuine reconciliation.

Over the past 20 years, Terrain NRM has had the privilege of working collaboratively with Rainforest Aboriginal Peoples groups across the Wet Tropics. We appreciate and recognise the critical role that Rainforest Aboriginal Peoples, and Aboriginal Peoples across the nation, play in caring for and healing country.

For this reason, Terrain NRM supports the Voice to parliament. A strong and empowered First Nation’s culture is an essential foundation for the future health and wellbeing of Country.

Why is the Voice important for solving our environmental challenges?

1. The Voice recognises Traditional Ownership

Rainforest Aboriginal People have been looking after our environment for thousands of years. We all have a role to play – and we believe Rainforest Aboriginal Peoples must play a leading role in caring for Country. Terrain NRM’s support of the Voice affirms our recognition of the Rainforest Aboriginal Peoples as the Traditional Owners of the Wet Tropics.

2. The Voice ensures representation of Indigenous knowledge

The Voice to Parliament is about recognising the value of Indigenous knowledge and wisdom, and enabling Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples to have a say on policies and legislation that affects them. In the NRM sector we already acknowledge the value of Traditional Ecological Knowledge, gathered over many centuries, and believe it must be incorporated into government policies and programs to ensure they are effective and sustainable.

3. The Voice promotes collaboration and partnership

Terrain NRM’s ethos is to ‘solve our environmental challenges – together’. Our impact is amplified when we work in partnership with others, embrace diverse perspectives and respect each other’s cultural differences.

4. The Voice commits to reconciliation

Environmental, social and economic issues are intertwined. People with less social, economic and political capital are more likely to suffer the consequences of a degraded environment. Respecting the rights, cultures and aspirations of First Nations people and committing to reconciliation will also positively impact on our environment.

Plans for a new Indigenous advisory committee will ensure Rainforest Aboriginal Peoples have more say in how the Wet Tropics of Queensland is managed.

The Wet Tropics Management Authority (the Authority), the statutory body established under the Wet Tropics World Heritage Protection and Management Act 1993, and Terrain NRM, a not-for-profit environmental management organisation that is one of Australia’s leading natural resource management bodies, have partnered to form this committee.

The Authority’s Board Chair Chrissy Grant said: “The Authority and Terrain NRM have identified a critical need for a coordinated approach to ensure the rights, interests and priorities of Rainforest Aboriginal Peoples are included in the planning, design and delivery of organisational plans, policies, and programs at a strategic level.”

“The Boards of both organisations have approved a proposal to establish a skills-based committee to advise on the strategic and operational priorities across the Wet Tropics Biocultural Region.”

Indigenous students from across the Wet Tropics region can apply for a grant to help with studies and future employment opportunities in environmental and agricultural fields.

Terrain NRM’s Natural Capital Fund Indigenous Education Bursary Program is open to students doing university or TAFE courses focused on the environment, agriculture, natural resource management, conservation or sustainable development.

Ty’a Dynevor and Kayoko Yamashita received $3000 grants through the fund last year.

“I’d gone from working full-time on Thursday Island to being a full-time student as a single parent in Cairns so getting one of these grants meant a lot,’’ Kayoko says.  “I could buy the equipment I needed for my practicals. It felt like it took financial pressures off my shoulders.”

Kayoko is in her second year of Environmental Management and Science at James Cook University.

“Never give up – just go for it”

Another of the university’s students, Ty’a (pictured) is in her third year of a Bachelor of Science, majoring in Zoology and Ecology.

She has this advice for others: “My Dad’s motto was ‘Never give up. Just go for it’. If you are experiencing financial stress and difficulties and you need an extra bit of money to support yourself in your studies, this is a great bursary fund and opportunity for you. I’ve also appreciated how Terrain keeps in touch with me for potential future opportunities, like internships and workshops in the region.”

Terrain NRM’s Natural Capital Fund Chair Pete Faulkner said the bursary program, now in  third year, is all about encouraging more Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders to become future leaders in natural resource management.

An environmental health monitoring program that harnesses the power of citizen science to protect and preserve mangrove and saltmarsh habitats is expanding to include the region’s largest river catchment. 

The Cairns chapter of MangroveWatch, which is coordinated by the Cairns and Far North Environment Centre (CAFNEC), was set up to fill an important monitoring gap between Rockhampton and Cape York. It has monitored Trinity Inlet and the Barron River since 2017 and Dickson Inlet and the Endeavour, Starke, Mulgrave and Russell rivers since 2019.  

Funding from Terrain NRM’s Natural Capital Fund is helping the program to expand into the Herbert River and Hinchinbrook Channel for the 2021/22 monitoring season. The expansion will establish baseline data on mangrove health and potential threats. The program will also contribute indicator data for the Wet Tropics Waterway Health Report Card – which assesses waterway health and tracks trends. 

Terrain NRM’s Chelsy Maloney says the data collected through CANEC’s program is helping to build a more comprehensive picture of mangrove condition. 

“As a community we can’t protect or respond to disturbances in these vital ecosystems without knowledge of how they are changing. Long term monitoring from a baseline gives a sound indicator of change over time. We’re pleased to support the work of CAFNEC and MangroveWatch.” 

“Annual monitoring in the Hinchinbrook Channel has also been tracking the recovery of mangroves since Cyclone Yasi devastated the area,” said Ms Maloney. 

Mangrove ecosystems worldwide are experiencing die-back due to climate change, and are also affected at a local level by urban development, rubbish, pollution and weeds.  

The trend is worrying as mangroves provide important ecosystem services like carbon sequestration, and provide coastal communities with protection from the impact of cyclones and extreme weather. They also nurture around 75% of all coastal fish catches.  

Indigenous students can be part of a new bursary program in the Wet Tropics region to help with their studies and future employment opportunities.

Terrain NRM has launched the Natural Capital Fund Indigenous Education Bursary Program.

Natural Capital Fund director and Terrain NRM Board’s first ‘Emerging Leader’ Rhiannon Simcocks said the fund wanted to encourage more Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders to become future leaders in natural resource management.

Students in the fields of natural resource management, environment, sustainable development, agriculture and conservation are eligible for the fund’s $3000 bursaries.

“It’s incredibly important for us to recognise the connection between young indigenous people and Country,’’ Ms Simcocks said. “We are hoping this new program will help to support Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders who want to further their studies for careers in natural resource management and advancements in collaborative management of the land and sea.”

Terrain NRM Board member and Djabugay traditional owner Barry Hunter said it was heartening to see more indigenous people caring for Country in the Wet Tropics region, and also guiding cultural land and sea management.

“We are seeing growth in land, fire and cultural heritage management roles,’’ he said. “We are also seeing growth in indigenous-led research. Having more young Aboriginal people engaged in the Wet Tropics region is crucial.”
Ms Simcocks said long-term goals of the program included an alumnus of bursary holders.

“There is a huge amount to be learned from young indigenous people, and from younger voices as a whole,’’ she said. “I was lucky enough to be Terrain NRM Board’s first ‘Emerging Leader’, an opportunity that included a 12-month mentorship program.

The first indigenous research grant has been awarded through a new Wet Tropics partnership, formed to improve land and water management in the Far North.

Skyrail Rainforest Foundation, Terrain NRM’s Natural Capital Fund, the Wet Tropics Management Authority and Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service have joined forces to create the Wet Tropics Cooperative Research Partnership.

The partnership has awarded a $40,000 grant to CQ University for researchers to work with traditional owners and others in the Atherton Tablelands region.

CQ University Professor of Tourism Bruce Prideaux said the team would establish protocols for a traditional knowledge and science supply database.

“We will be working closely with traditional owners from several groups and with others in the Tablelands community from local government to other land managers, industry and groups like historical societies,’’ he said.

“In this project we’ll be doing the groundwork, learning more about Country and cultural data needs and designing a framework including intellectual property agreements and cultural protocol templates.

“The aim is to combine traditional knowledge and science with western knowledge and science for improved land and sea water management outcomes.”

CQ University’s Joann Schmider, who is a Mamu traditional custodian from the southern Tablelands, said there was a passion to integrate traditional knowledge and practices into management of the Wet Tropics region.

“We sincerely thank each of the funding partners and each of the research partners, and look forward to the exemplary outcomes that these kinds of joint venture approaches can achieve,’’ she said.