Aboriginal Custodianship – Report Card

2026 Assessment: Progressing – region-wide achievement cannot yet be verified

There is strong evidence of increasing recognition, engagement and involvement of Traditional Owners and Custodians in natural resource management across the NAR. Since the 2021 NARvis review, formal mechanisms enabling Aboriginal participation in conservation, land, water and heritage management have strengthened substantially.

The Yamatji Nation Agreement – Land Component provides for the establishment of the Yamatji Conservation Estate, including approximately 470,000 hectares of new conservation parks, national parks and extensions to existing conservation areas that are to be jointly vested and jointly managed by the State Government and Bundi Yamatji Aboriginal Corporation. The Agreement also establishes a Yamatji Ranger Program and formal mechanisms through which Traditional Owners participate in management decisions.

Cultural governance has subsequently been strengthened through Yamatji Cultural Committees, Cultural Authority and the Joint Management Body. The Yamatji Cultural Authority brings together representatives of the Hutt River, Mullewa Wadjari, Southern Yamatji and Widi groups and provides a formal mechanism through which cultural values, knowledge and responsibilities for Country can inform decisions affecting land and waters.

Formal Traditional Owner participation is also occurring elsewhere in the region. The Badimia parks and reserves draft joint management plan was prepared jointly by the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (DBCA) and Badimia Bandi Barna Aboriginal Corporation and covers Lakeside National Park and a number of conservation parks and nature reserves on Badimia Country.

In the southern NAR, Yued Aboriginal Corporation provides a formal representative structure for Yued people under the South West Native Title Settlement. Engagement with Yued people is also evident at project level. For example, Moore Catchment Council projects at Guilderton have provided paid opportunities for Yued people to undertake dune rehabilitation, weed removal and revegetation, while newer projects continue to include Yued Working on Country activities.

These developments represent significant progress from the 2021 baseline and demonstrate a wider shift from consultation towards participation, cultural governance, joint management and Aboriginal-led delivery of NRM.

However, the goal applies to all natural resource management projects in the region. NRM projects are undertaken by many organisations, including government agencies, local governments, NRM organisations, community and conservation groups, grower groups, research institutions and private industry. No comprehensive regional dataset currently identifies every NRM project and records whether each has acknowledged and engaged the appropriate Traditional Owners, Custodians or representative organisations.

The universal target therefore cannot yet be verified.

2026 Assessment: Progressing – target not yet fully verified

Traditional Knowledge continues to inform a growing range of land, water, biodiversity and Sea Country initiatives across the NAR.

The 2021 NARvis review had already recorded numerous traditional knowledge activities, including Sharing Yamatji Knowledge, Sharing Noongar Knowledge, Corridors for Climate Change, Aboriginal cultural events, Return to Country activities and knowledge-sharing initiatives delivered through Aboriginal organisations. The previous target of five traditional knowledge projects had therefore already been achieved by 2021.

For the current goal, the word “additional” is important. Activities already included in the 2021 baseline should not be counted again. To demonstrate achievement, at least five distinct post-2021 projects should be identifiable that involve Traditional Knowledge and are led by Traditional Owners or Custodians.

Several strong examples have emerged.

The Yamatji Nation Integrated Water Study brings cultural knowledge and water science together to improve understanding and management of culturally important water places. During Phase Two, Yamatji Water worked with Cultural Authority representatives from Southern Yamatji, Hutt River, Mullewa Wadjari and Widi groups to identify and visit priority water sites. Elders and Cultural Authority members shared knowledge, stories and the cultural significance of these places, with information recorded with permission. Further information is available through Yamatji Water and YSRC’s reporting on the Integrated Water Study.

A Healthy Country Plan for Yamatji Southern was launched in late 2024 and developed collaboratively with the Yamatji Cultural Committees. It considers environmental and cultural priorities for Country and is intended to guide Yamatji Land and Sea Rangers in future management. The same program has also included a Yamatji Ranger Cultural Knowledge Exchange, linking Elders and Rangers through intergenerational knowledge sharing and on-Country learning. These initiatives are described in YSRC’s January-February 2025 newsletter.

Traditional Knowledge is also being incorporated into Sea Country management. Consultation commenced in 2026 on a potential Yamatji Sea Country Indigenous Protected Area, with Cultural Committees, Traditional Owners and community members identifying cultural, environmental and heritage values and priorities for future Sea Country management. The process is intended to ensure that cultural knowledge and Traditional Owner priorities remain central to decision-making. See Yamatji Sea Country IPA consultation.

Yamatji Rangers are also combining cultural knowledge with contemporary environmental monitoring methods. The Ellendale Pool Restoration and Preservation Project, for example, includes Ranger-led field mapping and monitoring of weeds, erosion, litter and other environmental features, while explicitly combining traditional knowledge with modern technology to support long-term care of Country. See YSRC May-June 2026.

Across Yued Country, Traditional Owner participation and Working on Country activities are also continuing, and Yued-led Healthy Country planning provides a further potential source of qualifying Traditional Knowledge projects.

These initiatives provide strong evidence of progress. However, some activities occur within larger Ranger, Healthy Country or Sea Country programs and should not automatically be counted as separate projects. The available public evidence does not yet provide a sufficiently consistent project register to verify that five distinct additional Traditional Owner-led Traditional Knowledge projects meeting the NARvis definition have been designed and implemented since the 2021 baseline.

2026 Assessment: Progressing – target cannot yet be verified

Activities to manage and protect Aboriginal cultural and heritage sites have continued across the NAR since the 2021 review.

The previous NARvis target required 25 management activities at sites of cultural and heritage significance. The 2021 review assessed that target as achieved, recording almost 200 registered heritage sites and works undertaken through Aboriginal Ranger programs and other initiatives. Those earlier activities provide an important baseline but should not automatically be treated as progress against the current target of 100 activities.

Post-2021 reporting demonstrates continued activity. In 2021-22, more than 30 Aboriginal Rangers participating in the Mid West Aboriginal Ranger Program undertook a range of land and cultural heritage activities, with 15 heritage sites registered, monitored or maintained during that reporting period. See the NACC NRM 2021-22 Annual Report.

Heritage management is also embedded in the Yamatji Nation Agreement, which establishes formal heritage arrangements and provides mechanisms for Yamatji involvement in decisions affecting Aboriginal cultural heritage. The Agreement also includes an Aboriginal Water Sites Restoration initiative intended to identify, restore and protect culturally important water sites. Yamatji Water reports that it is working with the Yamatji Cultural Authority to identify important cultural water sites for protection and restoration.

Traditional Owner-led heritage protection and management also occur through Ranger activities, joint-management planning and site-specific projects. On Badimia Country, cultural values and responsibilities for Country are incorporated into the Badimia parks and reserves draft joint management plan. On Yued Country, heritage and environmental management are increasingly incorporated into Traditional Owner governance and Working on Country activities.

Together, these activities demonstrate continued and substantial progress towards the goal.

However, no consolidated regional record currently identifies the total number of qualifying heritage-management activities undertaken since the current target was established. There is also no consistent definition of what constitutes a single “activity”. For example, repeated monitoring of the same cultural site could be recorded as one continuing activity or as several individual management events.

Without a consistent counting method and a NAR-wide record, it is not possible to determine whether the target of 100 activities has been reached.

2026 Assessment: Progressing – target cannot yet be verified

Aboriginal-owned organisations and businesses are increasingly involved in the delivery and governance of natural resource management across the NAR, including conservation, Ranger services, heritage management, water monitoring, environmental restoration and land and Sea Country management.

The 2021 NARvis review already identified Aboriginal organisations and businesses involved in NRM, including Western Mulga, Kwelena Mambakoort Aboriginal Corporation and Badimia Bandi Barna Aboriginal Corporation. Unlike Goal 2, the current Goal 4 does not specify that organisations must be “additional”, so established Aboriginal businesses and organisations may continue to contribute towards the target where they are supported to participate in NRM during the current reporting period.

Western Mulga and Kwelena Mambakoort Aboriginal Corporation have delivered Ranger and environmental-management activities through the Mid West Aboriginal Ranger Program. The 2021-22 NACC NRM Annual Report records contractual partnerships with Aboriginal-owned businesses and the engagement of more than 30 Aboriginal Rangers across five Traditional Owner groups.

Badimia Bandi Barna Aboriginal Corporation is directly involved with DBCA in joint-management planning for conservation estate on Badimia Country through the Badimia parks and reserves draft joint management plan.

Yamatji Southern Regional Corporation and Bundi Yamatji Aboriginal Corporation now have significant roles in cultural governance, conservation-estate management, Ranger programs and Sea Country initiatives under the Yamatji Nation Agreement. The Agreement provides long-term institutional and financial support for Aboriginal participation in natural resource management.

Yamatji Water provides an important example of Aboriginal participation developing into an environmental-services enterprise. It combines cultural knowledge with contemporary water-resource management and monitoring. The company reports that two participants completing its water-monitoring training pathway are now employed by the business. Further information is available through Yamatji Water.

In the southern NAR, Yued Aboriginal Corporation is increasingly involved in land, cultural heritage and Healthy Country activities, while paid Yued Working on Country opportunities have been incorporated into projects such as dune restoration and biodiversity management in the Moore River catchment. For example, a Guilderton dune rehabilitation project engaged 12 Yued workers to undertake revegetation and weed removal.

These examples demonstrate a broadening Aboriginal role in NRM from participation in individual projects towards Aboriginal-led organisations, enterprises, service delivery and environmental governance.

However, available regional reporting does not yet demonstrate 10 distinct Aboriginal-owned organisations or businesses that have received qualifying support to engage in NRM within the NAR. Care is also required to avoid double-counting related corporations or commercial entities and to distinguish general organisational support from support specifically enabling NRM activity.

The numerical target therefore cannot yet be verified.

2026 Assessment: Progressing – target cannot yet be verified

Aboriginal employment in natural resource management has expanded through Ranger programs, environmental enterprises, cultural heritage management, water monitoring and paid Working on Country activities.

The Mid West Aboriginal Ranger Program provides some of the strongest quantitative evidence. During 2021-22, five Traditional Owner groups engaged with and guided the work of more than 30 Aboriginal Rangers. The program included activities such as cultural heritage-site management, conservation works, threatened-species activities and other Caring for Country projects. See the 2021-22 NACC NRM Annual Report.

Additional employment pathways are being created through implementation of the Yamatji Nation Agreement. The Yamatji Conservation Estate includes provision for 14 Yamatji Ranger and Ranger Supervisor positions, with Rangers initially employed by DBCA and intended to transition to the Yamatji regional corporation. Yamatji Land and Sea Rangers now undertake environmental monitoring, restoration, invasive-species management, conservation work and cultural activities across Country and Sea Country.

Aboriginal employment is also developing in specialised environmental services. Yamatji Water reports that two trainees completing its water-monitoring training program are now employed by the company. Water monitoring, cultural water-site management and environmental-services contracting provide opportunities for employment outside the traditional Ranger model.

Paid Working on Country opportunities are also evident elsewhere in the NAR. In 2023, a Moore Catchment Council project at Guilderton provided paid dune-rehabilitation work for 12 Yued workers, involving revegetation and weed removal. More recent projects continue to include Yued Working on Country opportunities, including the Moore River community stewardship project.

Employment and paid participation also occur through cultural heritage work, environmental monitoring and Aboriginal-owned NRM businesses.

These activities indicate substantial progress towards the goal. However, the available figures cannot simply be added together. The same person may work across multiple projects or reporting years, move between Ranger programs, progress from training into employment, or undertake both heritage and environmental work. Training participation should also not automatically be counted as employment.

No NAR-wide dataset currently provides a de-duplicated count of individual Aboriginal people employed in NRM. The target of 100 people therefore cannot yet be verified.

The wording of the goal also leaves some ambiguity as to whether the target means 100 individual Aboriginal people employed cumulatively between the establishment of the goal and 2030, or 100 Aboriginal people employed in NRM at or around 2030. Clarifying this distinction would improve future assessment.