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Legislative Council - Fifty-Fifth Parliament, First Session (55-1)
2024-03-19 Daily Xml
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First Nations Disaster Risk Reduction Projects

The Hon. M. EL DANNAWI (15:26): My question is to the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs. Will the minister inform the council about the recent funding announced for First Nations disaster risk reduction projects?

The Hon. K.J. MAHER (Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Attorney-General, Minister for Industrial Relations and Public Sector) (15:26): I would love to inform the chamber about the recently announced funding for First Nations disaster risk reduction, as the honourable member has asked. I have been glad to share with the council on many occasions in the past the incredible benefits that flow from listening to and learning from the traditional knowledge held by First Nations communities, particularly in relation to the management of our natural environment.

The Riverland Rangers are one such example of this, where the dedicated First Nations ranger team utilises ancient traditional knowledge to carefully manage the river ecosystem. I am always glad to see updates about their work, having personally witnessed it just below Swan Reach recently.

Last week, it was announced that the Malinauskas Labor government, together with the Albanese federal Labor government, will jointly invest nearly $2 million in measures that will help South Australians reduce their disaster risk in the future. This includes significant funding for a number of projects that specifically enhance disaster preparedness, response and recovery for First Nations communities, led by First Nations communities. Some of the projects are:

funding to employ a dedicated Anangu fire officer in the APY lands to improve community engagement and integrate traditional knowledge and practices into disaster management planning;

funding for Burrandies Aboriginal Corporation's First Nations Roadside Management Program that will integrate First Nations knowledge and practices to develop a Limestone Coast roadside management strategy;

funding for South Australian Native Title Services to assist with the Nukunu Fire Stewardship workshops, where trained Nukunu fire practitioners, together with the Firesticks Alliance Indigenous Corporation, will provide workshops with the tools, knowledge and resources to understand the role of fire in the landscape and to engage in cultural fire burning practices;

funding for mapping Aboriginal heritage and disaster risk reduction, a project led by the state department of Aboriginal affairs, along with my Attorney-General's Department, to develop a heritage mapping tool that balances the need for heritage protection with the necessary confidentiality requirements; and

funding for the Ceduna Aboriginal Corporation to develop a fire risk and mitigation strategy for the Ceduna Aboriginal homelands.

In announcing the funding for these and other projects, federal Minister for Emergency Management, Senator Murray Watt, underlined the value of the millennia of knowledge held and preserved by First Nations communities and the importance of integrating this knowledge into the modern management of our environment and disaster planning. I congratulate all those involved for it and look forward to positive outcomes as a result.

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