KLC Land and Sea Management Unit

Part of KLC’s Vision is to ‘look after country’.

In 1998, the Kimberley Land Council established a Land and Sea Management Unit (L+SMU) to focus on indigenous natural and cultural resource management. The L+SMU works with Traditional Owners to run projects that look after, manage and take control of traditional country.

The L+SMU builds upon Aboriginal connection to country and traditional ecological knowledge and management responsibilities. Practical and applied approaches to Aboriginal involvement in contemporary land management is used as the basis for addressing environmental, economic, and social sustainability issues in the Kimberley. 

The L+SMU currently manages a variety of projects, and directly employs a number of staff across the region.  Projects include on-ground land-care and conservation activities, cultural heritage site management, recording of traditional knowledge, and planning for country.

Mission and Methods of Engagement

The L+SMU’s mission is to assist the Kimberley Aboriginal community to be empowered to keep country and culture healthy, generate positive social, economic, environmental, and cultural outcomes, and maintain strong connection to country for future generations.

The L+SMU engages with Traditional Owners directly through their Native Title Claim Groups.  It endeavors to align the aspirations of these groups in caring for their country, to the funding and other opportunities available to help implement these activities.

More details of the L&SMU’s strategic approach can be found on the Operations page.

Partnerships

The Unit works collaboratively in partnership with community organisations, government agencies and local government, research institutions, environmental groups, and industry.

Please click here to view a list of the Land and Sea Management Unit’s partners, with links to their websites.

Indigenous Ranger Program

Most Kimberley communities have expressed aspirations for their young people to be actively engaged in land management. They see ranger programs as the natural process to link their young people back to country and culture. It is also regarded as the most valid solution for employment in remote community life. Many communities already undertake projects, often with assistance from the L+SMU, which are in effect ranger programs.  Indigenous Protected Areas also provide governance and funding frameworks to carry out ranger programs in some places.

Currently, however, there is no co-ordinated Ranger program.  Providing a sustainable funding base for Ranger training and facilitation of ranger programs is a key aspiration of Kimberley Traditional Owners.  To this end, the KLC’s Land and Sea Management Unit, in conjunction with a range of partners, has been active in developing a proposal to establish a Kimberley-wide Indigenous Ranger Program.

Please click here to view an outline of this proposal.