Deadline: 24-Apr-23
The State of Queensland has launched the Queensland Indigenous Land and Sea Ranger Program (QILSRP) to provide grant funding to First Nations organisations to employ Indigenous Land and Sea rangers to deliver a program of on-country activities.
QILSRP also provides training, network opportunities and partnership support for ranger groups.
In 2020, the Queensland Government announced a funding boost for the QILSRP to deliver 100 additional Indigenous Land and Sea ranger positions. A total of 54 of these new ranger positions were allocated in 2021. Applications for grant funding for the remaining 46 ranger positions are now invited.
Objectives
- The QILSRP supports important services in caring for country across the state. Funded ranger groups care for cultural sites and land, waterway, and marine ecosystems and engage their communities in cultural practices on country. Through providing employment and capacity building opportunities, the program aims to:
- Promote the protection of Queensland’s biodiversity and cultural heritage, drawing on First Nations peoples’ knowledge in land and sea management.
- Strengthen and support stewardship of land and sea country by First Nations communities.
- Support continuous learning (both western and traditional) for Indigenous rangers.
- Increase conservation jobs and conservation economy opportunities for communities where rangers operate.
- The work of Indigenous rangers to care for country and protect the environmental and cultural values it holds delivers strong economic and social co-benefits for First Nations communities. QILSRP funded rangers support communities to maintain cultural connections to country, fulfil traditional responsibilities and progress aspirations for its care. Rangers often play a key role in promoting inter-generational knowledge transfer and in highlighting the value of education and employment.
What activities can be undertaken?
Successful applicants can use QILSRP funds to employ Indigenous rangers to undertake a wide range of conservation activities on country. The activities for each group will be negotiated with the successful applicant and will be outlined in annual work plans attached to the funding agreement. Activities may include weed and feral animal control, cultural site management, fire management, fencing of wetlands, land restoration, wildlife management, conservation and recovery of threatened species, activities to support knowledge transfer between generations, community education and visitor management etc. It is intended that the priorities and objectives for each ranger group reflect the aspirations of Traditional Owners and focus on the conservation of important cultural and environmental values on country. Other guiding documents and inputs that will be important to determining each annual work plan include:
- Country or other strategic management plans, such as Indigenous Protected Area (IPA) plans, Traditional Use of Marine Resources Agreements (TUMRAs), pest management or fire management plans.
- Queensland Government priorities (e.g., for threatened species protection).
- Any agreed fee-for-service activities, consistent with program policy.
Ranger groups can operate over a range of tenures, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander-held land, private land held for conservation purposes, and country owned or managed by government. Funded rangers cannot, however, deliver activities:
- On private or leasehold land where the activities (e.g., weed and pest animal control) are the primary responsibility of the private landholder.
- That are primarily for commercial benefit.
- That do not have a cultural heritage or conservation benefit.
Funding Information
- Funding is available for 46 ranger positions across Queensland.
- At least 30 of the 46 positions will be made available for new ranger groups.
- Each applicant can apply for a maximum number of ranger positions as follows.
- New ranger groups:
- Organisations not currently in receipt of funding for Indigenous rangers under the QILSRP Program, or the Indigenous Ranger Program funded through the National Indigenous Australians Agency (NIAA): Up to five positions.
- Organisations that receive funding for Indigenous rangers under the QILSRP or the Indigenous Ranger Program funded through NIAA and can demonstrate that the application is made on behalf of Traditional Owner groups that are not engaged in the organisation’s existing ranger program: Up to five positions.
- Existing ranger groups:
- Organisations that receive funding for Indigenous rangers under the QILSRP or the Indigenous Ranger Program funded through NIAA and are seeking to extend on their existing ranger groups: Up to two positions.
Eligibility Criteria
Organisations that operate in Queensland and meet the following requirements can apply for funding:
- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander not-for-profit organisations incorporated under the Corporations (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) Act 2006, Corporations Act 2001, Associations Incorporations Act 1981 or other legislation.
- Incorporated not-for-profit organisations applying at the request of Traditional Owner groups, that can demonstrate that they have the authority of, and will work in partnership with, the Traditional Owners for areas on which it is intended the rangers work.
- Deed of Grant in Trust (DOGIT) community councils or Aboriginal Shire Councils that are applying on behalf of Traditional Owner groups.
To be eligible to apply for funding, organisations must also not currently have overdue acquittals or reports in relation to any other grant funding provided by the Department of Environment and Science (DES). Where an eligible organisation is applying as a sponsor or auspice for a Traditional Owner group, evidence of an agreement between the applicant organisation and a body representing the Traditional Owners will be required. This will be sought from applicant organisations who are short-listed for Stage 2 and will need to address matters including governance arrangements and extent of proposed establishment support.
For more information, visit The State of Queensland.