Lessons in Jointly Managing the Land

A model for real partnerships grounded in free, prior, informed consent and the development of strong, well-governed Traditional Owner organisations and communities

Yorta Yorta Nation Aboriginal Corporation

http://www.yynac.com.au 2 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

We wish to acknowledge Yorta Yorta Ancestors, and Elders past and present, for their unfailing efforts to assert Yorta Yorta inherent rights to care for Country. We acknowledge their wisdom in resisting attempts to view and manage Yorta Yorta traditional lands in disconnected parts, as our Country must be considered as a whole that is inextricably tied to the health and wellbeing of our people. Our ancestors knew, as we know today, that when we take up our rightful role in managing traditional lands, people and Country are more likely to be healthy and strong.

Thanks also to our Board of Directors, Elders Council and community members who placed their trust in us to produce a record of experience and advice that reﬂ ects Yorta Yorta aspirations and views about joint management.

We also wish to acknowledge the support of Parks Victoria, without which the case study work and report would not have been possible, and the Gunditjmara and Wotjobaluk Peoples, who were part of early discussions for this project and supported Yorta Yorta to move ahead as the case study partner. We look forward to sharing this report with them, as well as other Traditional Owners. We hope they will ﬁ nd our work of beneﬁ t in supporting their own aspirations.

3 Disclaimer This document is an abridged version of the Yorta Yorta Nation Aboriginal Corporation (YYNAC) community and organisational strengthening Joint Management(2010). This report was prepared for Yorta Yorta Nation Aboriginal Corporation (YYNAC) by All-iN Productions Pty Ltd with the YYNAC Leadership and Business Team; and individuals - noted throughout - who provided their particular expertise, including Indigenous Campus for visual material. The report was prepared for the purpose of providing a Yorta Yorta perspective on the requirements for successful joint management that may be of benefi t to other Traditional Owners undertaking similar arrangements with government. It is anticipated that key fi ndings will also benefi t agencies that represent government in working with Traditional Owners in joint management arrangements. While Parks Victoria sponsored the development of the case study and report preparation, the views and opinions expressed throughout are not necessarily those of Parks Victoria. Both parties do not accept responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of contents, and will not be liable for any loss or damage that may occur directly or indirectly through the use of, or reliance on information contained within the report. © Yorta Yorta Nation Aboriginal Corporation 2010 Reproduction without expressed written permission is prohibited. Information provided in this report is on the basis that it may not be distributed, or reproduced in part, or whole, without prior written approval from the Yorta Yorta Nation Aboriginal Corporation. Written requests should be directed to the Chief Executive Offi cer, Yorta Yorta Nation Aboriginal Corporation email: [email protected] YYNAC warns that the report may contain images of Yorta Yorta people who have passed away and wish to apologise for any distress this may inadvertently cause to Yorta Yorta community members.

Report Preparation This YYNAC report was prepared by the YYNAC Business Team and Yorta Yorta community members who provided their knowledge, skills and experience to workshops, research and writing tasks. A list of acknowledgements is available in the full report. We also acknowledge All-iN Productions (facilitation, research and writing support); Indigenous Campus (visuals for full report); and Our Community (prepared abbreviated version). The input and support from Parks Victoria and the Department of Sustainability and Environment, particularly individuals who participated in workshops and discussions regarding what is required for us to do business effectively together, is also acknowledged.

4 INTRODUCTION: Background to this report In April 2008, Parks Victoria invited the Yorta Yorta Nation Aboriginal Corporation (YYNAC) to participate in a project designed to establish success factors for ‘joint management’ – the creation of a shared vision and shared decision-making for management of Country, in our case Yorta Yorta lands and waters (see map, below).

The project also aimed to clarify the real human and ﬁ nancial investment required by government to enable Chairperson – Neville Atkinson equitable and inclusive joint management arrangements and CEO Jade Miller and relationships. Our participation in a Cooperative Management Agreement (2004) with the Victorian Government over the past six years has given us a unique perspective of what is required for successful joint management. This report provides a summary of those lessons. The full report, including an extensive Joint Management Tool Kit and budgets, is available from YYNAC.

It is hoped that together these reports will inform the development and operations of the Yorta Yorta Joint Body, and the Barmah National Park Board of Management which is to undertake, along with Victorian Government agencies, joint management of the Barmah Forrest in Northern Victoria, and other designated Yorta Yorta Country.

We also hope that the report and accompanying resources will provide advice and support to other parties – Traditional Owners as well as government agencies – involved in joint management arrangements across Victoria and other parts of Australia.

Strong, successful joint management is characterised by real partnerships and is grounded in free, prior, informed consent. In such conditions, joint management has the potential to produce a range of real and lasting benefi ts for Traditional Owners, governments and the wider community, including: • better park and natural resource management; • increased, active and equitable engagement in caring for Country; • better protection of human rights and cultural capital; • long-term social, cultural, health, employment and economic benefi ts. • more targeted and effective strategies toward Closing the Gap between Indigenous and Non-Indigenous peoples through greater access to Country ; and • a platform for quantitative and qualitative research and data gathering, including in relation to the health, social and other benefi ts of increased engagement with and access to Country.

Traditional Yorta Yorta lands lie on both sides of the Murray River roughly from Cohuna in the west to Albury / Wodonga in the east. They include towns such as Echuca, Shepparton, Benalla, Corowa and Wangaratta and extend northwards to just south of Deniliquin. 5 ABOUT US: The Yorta Yorta story The Yorta Yorta people occupy a unique stretch of forest-wetlands located in what is now known as the central Murray-Goulburn region in north-central Victoria.

Our lifestyle and culture was based on hunting, ﬁ shing and collecting food from the variety of food sources provided by the ancestral lands, including the rich network of rivers, lagoons, creeks and wetlands that are still regarded as the life source and the spirit of the Yorta Yorta Nation.

The arrival of Europeans in Australia had a devastating impact on the Yorta Yorta people, with the population of some 5000-6000 being reduced by 85 per cent within a generation. Those who remained were eventually relocated to Maloga Mission on the New South Wales side of Murray River and later to the Cummeragunja Mission, which eventually became the base for the development of the Aboriginal political movement in the 1930s.

As early as the mid-1800s, members of the Yorta Yorta have been demanding compensation from the Victorian authorities for the destruction of their natural ﬁ shing areas. In 1860 they requested that a £10 tax be imposed on each paddle steamer passing up and down the Murray River, the proceeds of which were to be used to supply food in lieu of the ﬁ sh which had been driven away. These demands were unsuccessful, but it does illustrate that Yorta Yorta ancestors were well aware of their inherent rights and quick to exercise them – indeed, between 1860 and 1994 there were approximately 18 attempts to claim land and compensation. We have fought hard for traditional lands and the wellbeing of our people. We have succeeded in remaining connected to traditional land s, keeping the language and culture alive and our families intact despite huge losses along the way.

A formal structure for representing Yorta Yorta rights and interests grew out of structures established in the 1930s such as the Aborigines Advancement League, the Yorta Yorta Tribal Council, which was set up in 1983, and the Yorta Yorta Clans Group, established in 1989. The Clans Group was replaced by the Yorta Yorta Nations Aboriginal Corporation (YYNAC), which was incorporated in 1998 and remains the chief body for representing Yorta Yorta interests.

YYNAC is governed by a Governing Committee and an Elders Council, each comprising 16 members, one per family group (see diagram, left). A Chief Executive Ofﬁ cer manages the day-today operations of the organisation.

6 Recent history Testament to Yorta Yorta strength is the survival and growth of our people and our representative organisation, despite two rulings against recognition of Native Title in the white man’s courts – 1998 (Federal Court) and 1992 (High Court).

In 2004, YYNAC entered into a Cooperative Management Agreement with the State of Victoria, an agreement designed to provide a formal role for the Yorta Yorta peoples in managing “designated areas” within our traditional Country.

As a result of this agreement, an eight-member committee, comprising ﬁ ve members representing the Yorta Yorta peoples through YYNAC and three members representing the State was formed. The Yorta Yorta Joint Body provides advice to the Victorian Government on management of the Designated Areas (with the Minister retaining ultimate decision- making authority).

The Cooperative Management Agreement (2004) represented a key step in YYNAC’s evolving position as joint manager of traditional lands, and our progress towards economic sustainability.

PRINCIPLES Our ﬁ ndings about joint management of Country are underpinned by the Yorta Yorta Nation Aboriginal Corporation’s joint management vision:

A strong, sustainable and well-governed Yorta Yorta Nation Aboriginal Corporation that is an equal partner in the joint management of all Yorta Yorta Country under one streamlined regional governance arrangement. Our vision includes Country that is located in Victoria and New South Wales.

The report also reﬂ ects our Community’s views of joint management as expressed during a consultation program during 2007/09: • We are seeking ‘joint management’ as partners, not stakeholders and poor cousins to be consulted after the fact or decision. Joint management is not just about Barmah National Park but all of Yorta Yorta Country – a regional governance approach is what we seek. • We wish to identify how State and Federal government agencies and the Yorta Yorta Nation Aboriginal Corporation, and all the community, can take part in shared decision- making and arrive at a shared vision for managing Yorta Yorta Country together. • We need to explore how this journey is linked to the bigger picture for capacity building, including for health, education, employment and socio-economic development outcomes. For example: What will Yorta Yorta’s role be in policy and research development that underpins planning and decision-making in areas such as population growth versus climate change - impacts and adaptation – a vision for 2020 and beyond?

7 SUMMARY OF 15 SUCCESS FACTORS The essential ingredients for success can be summarised as follows:

1. Authentic partnership (Traditional Owners as partners, not stakeholders)

2. Respect for what all parties have to offer

3. Free, prior and informed consent

4. Properly resourced Traditional Owner corporations

5. Viewing and governing Country as a whole, including for cross-border cooperation

6. Deeper understanding of Traditional Owners

7. Regular joint management health checks

8. Transparent funding information

9. Strong, culturally competent leadership

10. Joined-up government

11. Good research and documentation, information sharing and data control

12. Strong network of Traditional Owner business leaders and chairpersons

13. Modiﬁ ed governance models

14. Clear Communication

15. Understanding of the meaning and beneﬁ ts of joint management

These points are clariﬁ ed and expanded in following pages.

SUCCESS FACTORS Below we outline what we believe are the essential elements required for a successful, mutually respectful, beneﬁ cial and productive joint management of lands and waterways, along with recommendations for action arising from each. A more detailed account of each is provided in the full report. 1. Authentic partnership (Traditional Owners as partners, not stakeholders)

Joint management must reﬂ ect real partnership – joint managers have to be vigilant about equity, inclusiveness, cooperation and cultural respect. Traditional Owners must be acknowledged as partners with a real inﬂ uence on decision-making, not ‘stakeholders’ to be consulted.

Power and control based approaches must be avoided. Expectations need to be high and the mindset collaborative rather than competitive. Partners must keep their word. Each party must be committed to making joint management work and stick to agreements.

• Practical support must be provided to Traditional Owners to ensure a level playing ﬁ eld for inﬂ uence and decision-making. Traditional Owners must be acknowledged as partners, not stakeholders. • Governments must keep their promises. For Yorta Yorta this includes meeting all Cooperative Management Agreement (2004) Stage One Aspirations, and following through on commitments to negotiate Stage Two Aspirations (see diagram below). Prior commitments also need to be kept in order to build faith and commitment to the joint 8 management journey ahead. Cooperative Management Agreement (2004)

2. Respect for what all parties have to offer

Traditional Owners, just like Government agencies, businesses and local communities, have skills and knowledge to contribute to joint management. These must be recognised, understood and appreciated. Government and agency representatives will come and go over time. Traditional Owners remain at the core – they are the backbone of Country. Their unique ecological knowledge, values and cultural connection with the land must always be respected.

• Traditional Owners have local knowledge holders, we know who they are – they are well placed to bring sound knowledge and experience to park management decision- making. Such people should be accessed through Traditional Owners.

3. Free, prior and informed consent

Traditional Owners often feel pressured to make agreements and arrangements quickly, when a slower, more inclusive process and quality independent advice is needed, both before and at the discussion table. A decision-making process that incorporates the principles of ‘free, prior and informed consent’ is crucial.

Free means that, as Traditional Owners we are not coerced or manipulated, punished or excluded if our views and preferred approaches differ from those in power positions. Free also relates to access to information that is needed to make informed decisions. This means we need to be resourced appropriately to meet other parties on equal terms.

Prior means that we have enough time to gather together and digest all the information we need before moving to planning and decision-making processes. It’s not about saying ‘here is the plan or decision’, and then asking us to give a response or consent. Our involvement must begin when people begin to talk about what needs to be done, decided, or planned.

Informed means that we have all the information we need in front of us – all facts, viewpoints and positions – before making decisions. It’s also about how information is provided.

• Discussions and sharing of information must begin at the pre-negotiation stage and continue to on-ground implementation. Visual communication tools and plain English (rather than government-style or jargon-based) documents should be used wherever possible. Timeframes need to reﬂ ect the Traditional Owners’ need to engage Elders and technical advisors before we reach decisions with partners. • Government should: • better fund the Traditional Owner organisation to access independent, quality advice and support • insist on more robust and equitable negotiation processes • fund core-base business infrastructure 9 • streamline joint management arrangements into a regional governance approach. 4. Properly resourced Traditional Owner corporations

Strong, well-governed and properly resourced Traditional Owner corporations are essential for effective joint management. Conversely, poorly resourced organisations with limited human resources, a poor business infrastructure and weak governance will slow or impede progress for joint management. Currently the Traditional Owner organisational landscape is diverse, and often poorly placed to support equitable, inclusive business with government.

Philanthropic, pro bono and business partners have been of great assistance to YYNAC in identifying funding and business opportunities, preparing funding proposals and other business documents, brokering relationships, negotiations, and meeting preparation. However, these relationships can be difﬁ cult to foster and maintain when the Traditional Owner business itself is largely running on a voluntary basis.

• Immediate remediation is required to build the core infrastructure and human resource capacities of Traditional Owner corporations. Investment in learning and development and succession planning for Traditional Owner organisations is also required. The full report provides our initial thinking about what we require to support our business - at a minimum a Business Leader, Business/Operations Manager (Finance, Legal Compliance, HRM), Administration, Rangers.

5. Viewing and governing Country as a whole

Traditional Owners have a cultural preference for viewing Country as a whole and favour regional governance. We do not see our traditional lands and all that live within them as separate. Land, water, culture, natural resources and people are interconnected and interdependent.

Distinct sections of Yorta Yorta Country cannot be viewed, or managed, in isolation. Joint management is not just about Barmah National Park but all of Yorta Yorta Country, including that which is located across the border into New South Wales.

A streamlined whole-of-Country approach reduces the risk of duplication and inefﬁ ciency, and maximises outcomes for addressing disadvantage. A streamlined model for joint management is also recommended to reduce consultation fatigue and communication confusion for Traditional Owners and agencies doing joint management and other partnership business together.

• Our future journey will be about joint management across Country. We believe this is a far more culturally inclusive, efﬁ cient and cost effective approach to joint management. A regional governance approach is essential. • The unpaid work that philanthropic, voluntary and pro-bono business partners undertake is important but should not replace the work of government, or the work Traditional Owner corporations need to do for government, because this work needs to be recognised and properly resourced. It is critical for Traditional Owner corporations to have a broad base of experience, skills and knowledge to support decision-making for their business. • Start-up project support, including help in proposal preparation and part funding for innovation, is highly beneﬁ cial. Joint management agency partners can assist through proposal preparation or provision of funds to access proposal writers where appropriate. Agencies should also be encouraged to partly or fully fund project innovations linked to joint management programs. The YYNAC Rangers Business Incubator is an example of a project innovation, as is the investment in the development of this case study report. Both projects are documented in greater detail in the full report.

10 6. Deeper understanding of Traditional Owners

Government and business partners to a joint management agreement must develop better knowledge of and familiarity with the culture and values of Traditional Owners, including attitudes to Country. There must be a greater understanding of and respect for different knowledge systems which may affect attitudes to management issues such as burning, ecological grazing and camping management.

Well-planned and budgeted organisational-cultural change programs are essential to support successful joint management. These programs should support all those involved, and at all levels in each organisation, to move forward as a team. Speciﬁ c attention should be given to the development of a shared vision, language, values, knowledge and skill base, with potential areas for conﬂ ict mapped and risks mitigated.

• All joint management partners must engage in continuous learning about relevant agreements, legislation, policy, traditional and contemporary experience, values, needs and interpretations. Learning should include free, prior and informed consent, the UN Declaration of Human Rights, legislative and policy frameworks, speciﬁ c negotiated Agreements, and enabling legislation – and how each can translate into planning and delivery structures. It is important that agency staff and leaders understand and respect Traditional Owners’ cultural preference for viewing Country as a whole.

• Culturally competent agency representatives are required. Agency representatives must be able to work ‘two-ways’: with Traditional Owners and across agencies, and within their own organisations to bring the best possible knowledge, skills and resources to the joint management program. Traditional Owners, in collaboration with agency learning and development teams, have an important role to play in building the cultural competence of agency staff. This can be achieved through quality, well-planned and relevant development programs that include governance, Indigenous Ecological Knowledge (IEK), park and natural resource management.

7. Regular joint management health checks

Currently the real costs of implementation of joint management for government agencies and Traditional Owner corporations are not met. Immediate and comprehensive health checks are required to provide advice for regional and central resource allocations required for joint management. An estimated budget for a minimum ‘start up’ program based on Yorta Yorta experience is provided in the full report.

• At a minimum, a ‘go to’ local Parks Victoria Joint Management Coordinator, and a ‘go- to’ Traditional Owner Joint Management Coordinator, attached to the Traditional Owner corporations, should be funded. These positions will support communications, ‘free, prior and informed consent’- based decision-making, governance development, policy and planning, and community/organisational strengthening.

11 8. Transparent funding information

The current funding environment is confusing and unclear. The Government should transparently provide information about funding allocations. This includes money set aside for Native Title negotiations and related government infrastructure costs; Agreement implementation processes; and community capacity building. Transparent information about Crown land areas, assets, leases and contract arrangements on Country is also required.

• Transparency around funding allocations assists open and transparent discussion, as well as alignment to strategic planning. It also assists Traditional Owner corporations to create budgets in line with the real costs and opportunities associated with joint management. • Division of monies for Indigenous programs, including Native Title and Indigenous capacity building, needs to be independently reviewed so that a re-alignment can occur for equitable distribution and provision of support to meet the governance requirements of all parties. Implementation factors should also be considered, such as the actual costs for building joint management business and partnerships. This is particularly important in the start-up phase (3-5 years) where cultural-organisational change for departments and business infrastructure establishment for Traditional Owners is needed. • A new funding model to deliver stable, ﬂ exible, and coordinated funding for Traditional Owner capacity building should be pursued.

9. Strong, culturally competent leadership

Traditional Owner corporations need people who can work positively and think outside the square. There must be an emphasis on building the next generation of joint managers and leaders through appropriate youth-based programs. The leadership group needs to draw on the skills and knowledge of people and networks with expertise in areas such as enterprise development, legal and ﬁ nancial advice, environmental and park planning, and economic development.

Leadership also needs to be fostered through joint management champions across government and across business areas within government agencies. This will provide better support and direction to departmental staff, Traditional Owners and joint management programs. Joint management must be positioned as more than Native Title and Cultural Heritage; it is about community and organisational development and inclusive park and natural resource management.

Those in leadership positions must work to encourage and champion the value of joint management, and advocate for an authentic, culturally relevant partnership approach.

• Cultural/organisational change is needed, and should be led from the highest levels of government and with a commitment to a 3–5 year intensive cultural change program. Until that time, joint management success relies greatly on the drive and commitment of individuals within government and Traditional Owner organisations, and pro bono voluntary support. • All parties must strive for high levels of cultural respect and awareness, and personal/ business reﬂ ection on when individual, business team or departmental cultural bias may be limiting or preventing positive relationships and achievement of aspirations. • Youth programs and other leadership development initiatives should be encouraged.

12 10. _ Joined-up government

Our experience through this case study, and for many years prior, has shown that government business is often fragmented and disconnected. Joined-up government business is spoken about but in practice is difﬁ cult to achieve. Duplication and relationship confusion are common. Small Traditional Owner corporations may struggle to navigate and manage this environment, given their limited human and ﬁ nancial resources, and the reality of consultation fatigue.

Cross-departmental communications and collaboration is important. Joint management cuts across a number of departmental regimes, each bringing to the program its own expertise, needs, interests and opportunities. Traditional Owners do not see the business of managing Country in ‘parts’ or ‘silos’. Just like Traditional Owner corporations, government departments need also to be developed for joint management. Their organisations and systems, not just ours, need to be reviewed and improved to ensure the best possible outcomes.

• Effective joint management requires proactive, transparent collaboration and sharing of resources by and between government agencies. This helps to avoid consultation fatigue, duplication and inefﬁ ciency. • Agency staff need to be supported through cultural and organisational change programs and cultural respect/awareness training. There is also a need for tailored joint management learning and development programs to ensure the inclusion of joint management directions across all program areas. • The funding environment is complex and challenging. Government agencies can assist Traditional Owners by proactively assisting us to be aware of and manage the opportunities that may be presented by funding across government, or as shared funding investments for support of joint management business and our broader aspirations

11. Good research and documentation, information sharing and data control

Government agencies, as a matter of good business planning and governance, commonly engage appropriate expertise to conduct research and business planning activities. Similarly, independent research and document preparation is required for Traditional Owner organisations. Better data, strategic plans, demographic studies and other research will aid in planning and evaluating the success of joint management programs. It will also support informed decision-making, resource allocations and reporting, and assist in providing advice on natural resource management to others.

• There are major information and documentation gaps for Traditional Owner organisations in areas including: demographics; strategic and operational business planning; park and natural resource management planning; human resource management; full, prior and informed consent; and communications planning. A full schedule of research and document preparation is recommended in the full report.

12. Strong networks of Traditional Owner business leaders and chairpersons

Opportunities to meet and share information with peers experiencing similar challenges have been useful. YYNAC found that informal support and information sharing (with attention to intellectual property and commercial-in-conﬁ dence information) has been valuable.

• Government agencies can assist networking and learning exchange by providing support to a network for gatherings, and the creation of a central base for meetings and business. YYNAC’s experience is that it is difﬁ cult to practically follow through without this support. A central meeting place would also provide an opportunity for connection with agency and philanthropic partners.

13 13. Modiﬁ ed governance models

A community/organisational development focus that takes into account the local knowledge, skills and experience of Traditional Owners and their partners is more likely to support success. One-size-ﬁ ts-all, Western-style constructs should not be imposed. Instead, a joint management approach should involve working towards governance and organisational management models that are tailored to local cultures and conditions. Of course, this must not come at the expense of compliance with statutory and ﬁ nancial requirements.

• The current Victorian Government/Offi ce of the Registrar of Indigenous Corporations/ Aboriginal Affairs Victoria governance training model and associated resources are benefi cial for individuals requiring governance development. However, they need to be reviewed to include support for joint management teams and locally based, organisationally focused governance development. This support needs to be delivered by highly skilled facilitators who can bring knowledge and experience in: • park and natural/cultural resource management; • community and organisational development; • Indigenous governance; and • free, prior, informed consent. • Family groups need to be at the core of community engagement for joint management. YYNAC has benefi ted from the support of a Family Group Coordinator role, whose responsibility is to gather oral histories and data, develop oral history projects, and empower and engage families, Elders, and children. The Corporation also needs to develop an ‘informed consent’ strategy and process for engaging families, including for the distribution of fl yers and membership drives – enabling all community members to be part of the joint management journey.

14. Clear Communication

Communication and reporting lines between the Joint Management Board; Traditional Owners Board and Elders; Parks Victoria management; Government-departmental staff; and Ministers must be clear. All parties must have their roles and responsibilities clariﬁ ed, communicated and clearly understood. The expectations and communication protocols that apply to all parties for joint management must be explicit.

• Positive, solution-focused rather than problem-focused language should be the default. • Shared joint management protocol documents, communications plans and planning documents that are viewed as important to joint management and decision-making are itemised in Part 2 of the full report.

14 15. Understanding of the meaning and beneﬁ ts of joint management

The term ‘joint management’ and others like it often mean different things to different people. There are many ways joint management structures can be expressed in practice. The Canadian experience has shown that as joint management evolves, there can be a shift towards more equal power-sharing. Increased efforts to build effective relationships, along with statutory and legislative imperatives, have contributed to this shift.

The Canadian experience shows that joint management is not something to be feared: park resources continue to be managed well and in the interest of all Canadians. We would argue that in many cases park management has improved under joint management.

It is also clear that Indigenous disadvantage can be directly addressed through joint management. Indeed, YYNAC will measure joint management success in part through the organisation’s capacity, with support from partners and relevant others, to make a difference in addressing disadvantage for Yorta Yorta, and other Indigenous people who have made Yorta Yorta Country their home.

While there is a long way to go yet, YYNAC can now clearly advocate the broad beneﬁ ts to individuals, families and communities from Traditional Owners’ engagement in a range of community strengthening programs on Country.

The Council of Australian Governments (COAG) has also made the connection between access to traditional lands and improved outcomes for health, employment, economic development. Yorta Yorta have always known this to be the case, and assert our inherent right to access and care for traditional lands.

We applaud the COAG’s continued emphasis on building economic independence of Traditional Owners. However, we caution against views of Aboriginal people as ‘disadvantaged’ without acknowledgement of the strength and resilience we have demonstrated in the face of signiﬁ cant structural and systemic barriers, including for access to traditional lands.

Joint management is not our only means of addressing disadvantage but it is a partnership opportunity, amongst a mix of other partnerships and relationships that can assist us in building employment and economic development.

• It is important to clearly deﬁ ne what both parties mean by ‘joint management’ or whatever term is used. It is suggested that workshops are held to do this, facilitated by a highly skilled, independent facilitator. This workshop should cover aspirations for partners in moving joint management forward • Traditional Owners have a key role to play in COAG planning and decision-making. There are many opportunities to directly address disadvantage through joint management programs and the leverage gained from access to traditional lands. Examples of such projects, including the YYNAC Rangers program which supports school-to-work options for Yorta Yorta youth, are provided in the full report.

15 THE FUTURE This project has enabled us to provide a model that, if funded appropriately, will lead to real partnerships grounded in free, prior, informed consent and the development of strong, well- governed Traditional Owner organisations and communities.

When the project commenced, YYNAC was in a state of transition from old to new governance. We were without a Business Manager, and had only a small staff team that was mainly servicing government’s information needs for Cooperative Management and Cultural Heritage compliance. Today we are slowly but steadily moving towards economic sustainability and our new position as joint manager of traditional lands with government. We are also moving towards our aim of addressing injustice against our people and traditional lands, resulting from over 200 years of dispossession and poor land management practices. As Yorta Yorta Elder Dr Wayne Atkinson said in 2007:

Indigenous wisdom throughout the world shares a common belief system that all things are related. What happens in one area sooner or later directly or indirectly impacts on other areas. The history of imported land uses that we are now dealing with some two centuries since the imposition of European land management practices vindicates this view.

The creation of the Barmah National Park in 2009 is an example of government’s increasing acceptance of the view that action needs to happen so that life in this part of Victoria is sustainable for all. We are aware that this intervention has caused pain in the broader community and note the feelings of dispossession – feelings we hope may spark some interest and empathy in the experience of Yorta Yorta since our own dispossession. We intend to work with government and these community members to heal this pain. We also intend to continue the ﬁ ght for land justice, and address the disadvantage our people have experienced – and continue to experience today – as a result of forced removal from the management of their traditional lands, water, cultural and natural resources.

This will be assisted by building Yorta Yorta Nations Aboriginal Corporation as a strong and economically sustainable organisation that is well positioned to represent Yorta Yorta through more equitable, inclusive and socially just joint management processes.

We will continue to play our part with government in managing our traditional lands. However, if joint management is to be successful for Yorta Yorta and others, then more equitable, inclusive, efﬁ cient and culturally respectful approaches and decisions must be made – the playing ﬁ eld must be levelled.

As future joint managers of the Barmah National Park, and continuing cooperative joint managers of Designated Areas, we believe successful implementation will involve a streamlined, regional governance approach that takes in all traditional lands currently in the care of the Crown. This view has both cultural and practical origins.

We look forward to exploring options for developing a state or national-level team to promote and oversee implementation of our recommendations.

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