WELCOME TO
Country Needs People
We're an independent not-for-profit committed to championing Indigenous land and sea management across Australia by supporting, advocating and amplifying the vital work of Indigenous Rangers, Indigenous Protected Areas (IPAs), and Indigenous caring for Country.
Alongside over 50 Indigenous partners we work to support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in protecting and restoring biodiversity across their lands and seas while sustaining, strengthening and transmitting culture on Country.
OUR TEAM AND APPROACH
Led by a majority Indigenous board, Country Needs People has a team of skilled and experienced staff and contractors operating nationwide.
The Country Needs People team works on a wide range of activities from providing practical assistance to Indigenous community organisations, influencing decision makers, and mobilising Australians of all backgrounds to support Indigenous land and sea management.
We work collaboratively with a growing network of over 50 Indigenous partner organisations and over 120,000 Australians who have signed up to support the positive vision of healthy land and sea cared for by Traditional Owners connected to Country.
As a non-partisan organisation, we are committed to working with governments of all political persuasions at state, territory and federal levels to ensure Indigenous land and sea management is expanded and supported into the future.
STRONG ON COUNTRY, STRONG IN CULTURE
Before European contact Indigenous Australians occupied and managed all of our continent for millennia. That connection has been sustained despite enormous challenges since colonisation. Our ecosystems today are a result of Indigenous use, occupation and management and require active management to sustain the unique biodiversity and natural values we all cherish.
The future health of large parts of the Australian environment is now inseparable from the growth and security of Indigenous Protected Areas (IPAs) and Indigenous Rangers. Rangers work on Country to maintain the health of their traditional lands, while IPAs make up a vital part of our National Reserve System, managed by Traditional Owners to protect both biodiversity and cultural values.
Indigenous Rangers and IPAs are now recognised as critical components of the overall effort to manage and protect Australia's natural and cultural estate. They provide thousands of meaningful jobs including in the most remote corners of Australia, while IPAs currently cover more than 110 million hectares of land and Sea Country – more than 54% of our entire National Reserve System.
OUR ACHIEVEMENTS
Country Needs People has a powerful track record of delivering practical improvements for Indigenous led and community based conservation and land and sea management.
Our advocacy alongside our Indigenous partner organisations is delivering major gains at a national and state level. This includes locking in a funding commitment of over $1.8 billion to secure and grow Indigenous land and sea management nationally and funding increases resulting in more than 40 million additional hectares of IPAs since 2016.
Read more about our advocacy here.
Banner Image: Budj Bim Rangers Colleen Hamilton & Lashay Blurton. Inset: Yirrganydji Ranger Manoah Del Wallace. Photos: Annette Ruzicka/Country Needs People.
