Ecosystem services and livelihood opportunities for Indigenous rural communities in savanna landscapes, Jeremy Russell_Smith, ACEAS Grand 2014

1. Ecosystem services and livelihood
opportunities for Indigenous rural
communities in savanna landscapes
Jeremy Russell-Smith and colleagues

2. Background concept
Develop a dialogue between rural Indigenous communities across
northern Australia and neighbouring regions, eastern Indonesia,
Timor Leste, PNG, to explore opportunities for sustainable
economic opportunities—particularly those afforded through new
economies related to ecosystem services, climate change
mitigation, carbon trading, REDD+…

4. Fig. 1 Major land uses and cadastre for north Australian savanna region

5. Aboriginal managed
lands—ILC 2008
Aboriginal Native Title
Applications—ILC 2008
Fig. 2 Indigenous land
interests in north Australia
savanna region

6. Times Burnt
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
North Australia: times burnt 2000-2011.
MODIS Mapping.
0 250 500125
Kilometers
Date: 13/12/2012

7. Catchment Services

8. Mondu Perdu, Timor Leste

9. Waingapu, Sumba NTT

10. Broad vegetation map and
logging concessions in the
TransFly project area, PNG

11. Objectives of first Darwin workshop, April 2012,
co-funded by ACEAS and United Nations University
• Identify key land use management challenges in the 4 regions
• Explore economic opportunities related broadly to ecosystem
services, climate change mitigation, carbon trading, and related
instruments (e.g. REDD+)
• Commence assessments of value of ecosystem services and
associated economic opportunities through formal scenario
modelling exercises
• Develop basis for an ongoing dialogue

12. Model outputs using NetLogo software incorporating a number of forestry development
options for the TransFly project area, PNG. The model tracks forest condition, carbon and
timber revenues over a 20 year time-frame, with the capacity to alter the variables of
rotation length, time to full growth, harvest volume, and royalties.

13. Follow-up workshops
PNG (October 2012)—Sponsored by PNG Sustainable
Development Program Ltd, United Nations University
Kupang, Indonesia (May 2013)—Sponsored by Crawford Fund

14. Current initiatives
• Bushfire & Natural Hazards CRC funding (2014-2020) for program addressing
Indigenous community resilience across northern Australia, and neighbouring
countries
• AUSAID funding to UNU and partners for feasibility assessment of savanna
burning and related activities in savannas globally—including neighbouring
countries
• Ongoing economic opportunities assessment in PNG’s TransFly region,
funded by Western Province Govt
• Ongoing AUSAID funding for development projects in NTT Indonesia
• Prospective carbon offsets-landscape management project in TL, co-funded
through ConocoPhillips and ACIAR