Thriving native ecosystems, protected by Indigenous Rangers
Around 85 per cent of Australia's plant species are endemic, and our nation is home to half the world's marsupial species. However, Australia also has one of the highest rates of biodiversity loss in the world. Our precious places are suffering from changes in land use, the invasion of weeds and feral animals, and the impacts of a changing climate. Unless this shifts, further extinctions are expected within the next 20 years.In Arnhem Land—one of the Australian Government's priority areas for conservation—Traditional Owners and Djunkay (collectively: landowners) manage these areas with knowledge dating back tens of thousands of years. They believe the land suffers most without its people—this is sometimes called 'orphaned' or empty Country.
In the second half of the twentieth century, landowners largely moved away from remote parts of Arnhem Land, due to missions, work opportunities and larger communities. During this time, yearly wildfires grew more destructive, hoofed animals destroyed freshwater places, and invasive species outcompeted native species. The disruption to Indigenous land management led to plummeting numbers of native mammals—including species of great cultural importance— and to the shrinking of rainforest patches.The homelands movement began to reverse these trends from the late twentieth century through encouraging Indigenous peoples to return to their lands to reinstate their care for Country. Today, Indigenous rangers living and working on Country are best placed to curb the decline in native biodiversity and to improve the habitats for future generations.
