Grassy ecosystems in northeast NSW and southeast Queensland will benefit from a coordinated approach to the reintroduction of fire with stakeholders who share a vision for integrating traditional Aboriginal practices with the science of fire ecology. Presentation from Nature Conservation Council of NSW 2015 Bushfire Conference - Fire and Restoration: working with fire for healthy lands.

1. 1
Aboriginal grassy
pathways
Unpacking how they underpinned
regional biodiversity
Mal Ridges & Geoff Simpson

2. 2
The challenges:
Fire behaviour
Ecological response
Science: Legacy:
Past landscapes
Contemporary landscapes
Practice:
Cultural obligation
Regulated activity

3. The story in northeast NSW:
3
Opportunity:
Native grassland
Big scrub: rainforest
Fire
No Fire
dependent
species
Eastern bristle bird
Hasting river mouse
Aboriginal burning
Traditional pathways
Land management

4. 4
Doorabee Grasslands
An example:
Widjabul people of the Bundjalung NationWidjabul people of the Bundjalung Nation
A partnership between Dorrabee GrasslandA partnership between Dorrabee Grassland
Reserve Trust, Ngulingah Local Aboriginal LandReserve Trust, Ngulingah Local Aboriginal Land
Council and the Nature Conservation CouncilCouncil and the Nature Conservation Council
through the Firesticks project.through the Firesticks project.

5. 5
Doorabee Grasslands
Landscape connections:

6. 6
Doorabee in context:

7. 7
Connections to cultural sites:

8. 8
Corridors of visibility:

9. 9
Eastern Bristle Bird sites:

10. 10
Regional wildlife corridors:

11. 11
Cultural & natural pathways:

12. 12
Property to landscape:
Grassy pathways are an avenue to integrating the
science, legacy & practice of burning in NE NSW
But…it means integrating
burning across the LANDSCAPE

13. 13
Land-use & tenure complexity:

14. 14
New messages:
What about the fire message?
Mellanganee lookout

15. 15
Scoping futures:
Ecologists Aboriginal
communities
Land managersLand holders
NGOs (Landcare)
RFS
Government
Historians
coordinatingcoordinating
organisation ?organisation ?