It was really great to see your announcement of seven new Indigenous Protected Areas this week. I support growing and securing the wonderful work being done on Indigenous Protected Areas and by Indigenous rangers. It was great to see that success recognised in your statements about this too. Soon, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people will be caring for more than half of Australia’s protected areas on land, and I think that is something every Australian can be proud of and grateful for.

As a person who strongly supports the contribution of IPAs to nature, culture and local jobs, I would love to see more Indigenous Protected Areas across our country. Australia is a big place and there is a lot of country to look after.

I congratulate you on taking this important step and hope to see more growth and security of the Indigenous Protected Area and Indigenous ranger programs into the future.