Supporting a national network of professional cultural fire mentors and trainers.
About the Project
WWF-Australia's Regenerate Australia partnered on the Firesticks project which supports a national network of professional cultural fire mentors and trainers. It aims to contribute to the development of Indigenous cultural fire management capacity in Australia’s southeast through supporting Firesticks Alliance’s employment of cultural fire knowledge holders and practitioners as full-time mentors/trainers.
The Issue
To provide increased opportunities for Indigenous people across Australia’s east coast to work on delivering both social and economic benefits for Indigenous communities and to increase public awareness of the significance and value of Indigenous knowledge systems and Caring for Country practices.
The Solution
WWF-Australia's Indigenous Fire Management program in conjunction with the Firesticks Alliance supports Indigenous partners to take on, lead and grow their fire management practices independently into the future, supporting the Indigenous-led revitalisation of cultural fire management. The project will help provide pathways for Indigenous fire practitioners across Australia to build their capacity, revitalise traditional knowledge systems and share their experiences.
The program contributed to Firesticks’ employment of two new cultural fire experts as full-time mentors, to enhance cultural fire and land management capacity in Southern NSW and Victoria. Under Firesticks’ leadership, the mentors are helping to enhance cultural fire knowledge and skills in their own communities, while also supporting other Indigenous community initiatives on public and private lands.
Firesticks Alliance is a leading Indigenous-led organisation facilitating workshops and knowledge sharing that enable and empower Indigenous communities to work together towards healthy and resilient landscapes.
Tas Walking Co Foundation is a supporter of WWF-Australia's Regenerate Australia program.
The Impact
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WWF-Australia helped to secure the full-time paid employment of these two roles helping to integrate Indigenous ecosystem, cultural and biodiversity values in national and local planning, land management practices and development processes.
By building local knowledge and understanding of cultural fire and land management practices, the coordinators are shifting the way local councils, community members and the broader Australia public engage with environmental resilience projects. We have seen evidence of this shift in both regions.
Find out More
To find out more visit go to: WWF-Australia's Cultural Fire : The Next Generation.
100% of your donations go directly to our projects. All administrative costs are paid for by the Tasmanian Walking Company and Australian Walking Company.
