Indigenous Alliance

Traditional owners and delegates at the first forum for the North Australian Indigenous Land and Sea Management Alliance in August 2004. Held at the Wynbarra waterhole on Menngen Aboriginal Land Trust, west of Katherine, the forum canvassed how the Alliance would help with issues of concern for Aboriginal people.

The North Australian Indigenous Land and Sea Management Alliance was established by the peak Indigenous natural resource agencies across northern Australia taking in the Kimberley, the Top End of the Northern Territory, and d the Gulf of Carpentaria and Cape York in Queensland.

It exists as a Memorandum of Understanding between these groups, but is a partner in the TS-CRC and one that can provide a vehicle for improved research outcomes for Indigenous landowners across the tropical savannas.

The Alliance comprises the Kimberley Land Council, Northern Land Council and the Balkanu Cape York Development Corporation. NAILSMA aims to build capacity by facilitating knowledge sharing across the north. It will also develop collaborative arrangements with western science agencies to benefit both indigenous and non-Indigenous land managers.

Objectives include:

• support and promote knowledge and leadership in local communities;
• assist indigenous leaders to create opportunities for the transfer of knowledge and development of leadership across generations (for example, family-based back to country camps);
• identify the requirements for the sustainable management of indigenous natural and cultural resources;
• improve communication and information exchange;
• investigate culturally and commercially appropriate ways to protect indigenous knowledge.

You can download PDFs to read about:

• A discussion paper on the structure of the alliance
• Final report of the first NAILSMA forum (delegates pictured above)
• The first issue of Kantri Laif, a new publication for Indigenous land managers across northern Australia
• Savanna Links articles and CRC research involved in Indigenous issues.