Sign the petition for more Aboriginal rangers for South Australia

    OR

    Join the call

    Join us in sending a message to your local state politicians and candidates for the next South Australian election calling on them to grow and support Aboriginal rangers.

    Across South Australia, traditional owners work to care for Country by looking after heritage sites, protecting threatened species and managing environmental threats like destructive wildfires, feral animals and invasive weeds.

    The work of Indigenous land and sea management programs like Indigenous rangers are well-known for having huge social, economic and environmental benefits, particularly for remote and regional communities. They are successful because they are aligned strongly with Indigenous people’s cultural aspirations and obligations to look after Country.

    Despite this, and unlike other states including Western Australia, Queensland and the Northern Territory, South Australia does not fund Aboriginal ranger teams directly or have any program that solely supports Indigenous land and sea management.

    Most Indigenous land and sea management in South Australia is funded by the Federal Government through the Indigenous Ranger and Indigenous Protected Area programs. Twelve Indigenous Ranger teams and 10 Indigenous Protected Areas are funded by those programs in SA, covering nearly 5.8 million hectares.

    Threats to Country are increasing, and traditional owners in South Australia could do more to care for Country with support from their state government. That’s why Country Needs People is calling on all South Australian politicians and candidates to commit to: 

    1. Developing a Looking after Country strategy for South Australia
    2. Establishing a SA Aboriginal Ranger Program to protect South Australia’s cultural and environmental leadership and provide up to 50 full-time equivalent jobs for Aboriginal people
    3. Investing $8 million over four years in a Looking after Country Project Fund
    4. Establishing an annual $750,000 Indigenous land and sea management small-grants program to support new and emerging groups.

    Dear local candidates,

    As a South Australian, I want to see a future state government commit to growing Indigenous land and sea management in South Australia. 

    Along with Country Needs People, I am calling on candidates and parties to commit to:

    1. Developing a Looking after Country strategy for South Australia
    2. Establishing a SA Aboriginal Ranger Program to protect South Australia’s cultural and environmental leadership and provide up to 50 full-time equivalent jobs for Aboriginal people
    3. Investing $8 million over four years in a Looking after Country Project Fund
    4. Establishing an annual $750,000 Indigenous land and sea management small-grants program to support new and emerging groups.

    Across South Australia, traditional owners work to care for Country and culture to the benefit of all South Australians. Aboriginal rangers care for and monitor important cultural sites, tackle feral animals and invasive weeds, look after threatened species, and limit destructive bushfires. This work also has a transformative effect on Indigenous communities by providing valued jobs that strengthen people’s cultural identity and self-esteem, developing skills and capacity to deliver projects, developing role models, careers and business opportunities.

    South Australia is a big State and threats to Country are only worsening.  As a State we can and should do better to support and grow Indigenous rangers and Indigenous land and sea management with direct funding. That’s why we need a future South Australian Government to commit to supporting work to heal Country now and grow Indigenous land and sea management into the future.

    If elected, what will you do to support Indigenous land and sea management for the long term in South Australia?

    Yours sincerely,
    <NAME>