{"id":17959,"date":"2017-01-16T09:05:08","date_gmt":"2017-01-15T22:05:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures?p=17959&preview=true&preview_id=17959"},"modified":"2024-09-18T12:31:14","modified_gmt":"2024-09-18T02:31:14","slug":"sustainable-tourism-and-the-future-of-northern-australia-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/sustainable-tourism-and-the-future-of-northern-australia-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Sustainable tourism and the future of the Northern Territory"},"content":{"rendered":"

Stretching from the ancient baked plains of the Kimberley to the tropical escarpments of Cape York, northern Australia is home to some of the rarest ecosystems \u2013 and oldest cultures \u2013 in the world. While the past 20 years have seen great progress in native title land claims, and protecting our National Parks<\/a>, the future of the north is at a crossroads. Big-business plans for more mines, gas fields, dams and unsustainable agriculture threaten to destroy this region\u2019s delicate environment and ignore its Indigenous populations.<\/p>\n

Nobody knows or cares more about this stuff than Graham Tupper, the Northern Australia Program Manager for the Australian Conservation Foundation (or ACF), Australia\u2019s leading environmental organisation. We\u2019ve worked closely with these guys for 10 years through our own not-for-profit, The Intrepid Foundation,<\/a> to help protect Australia\u2019s environmental and cultural heritage.<\/p>\n

\"graham-tupper-in-central-australia\"<\/p>\n

We had a chat to Graham about the future of Australia\u2019s great north, and why sustainable tourism driven by Indigenous communities should be right at the centre of it.<\/p>\n

ACF is fighting for a greater focus on clean energy, sustainable agriculture and tourism in the north. Why is tourism so important?<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Tourism is a major employer in the north. In Far North Queensland<\/a> and the Kimberley<\/a> in particular, it far exceeds mining and resource development. It\u2019s also a more stable employer. You see these wild swings in employment in the resource sector, like in the Northern Territory<\/a> right now, where the shutdown of the alumina refinery near Gove means nearly the whole town will lose their jobs. With tourism of course there are uncertainties, but you don\u2019t see such massive dislocation.<\/p>\n

Unemployment among Indigenous Australians is really high, especially in the Kimberley; the unemployment rate among Indigenous young people is over 50% in some places (although this is not always reflected properly in statistics). Short-term schemes \u00ad\u2013 like the government\u2019s Green Army programs \u2013 are fine for six months, but what happens after that? That\u2019s where tourism comes in.<\/p>\n

What does northern Australia offer for travellers?<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Travellers come to northern Australia expecting to see unique natural landscapes \u2013 forests, rivers and escarpments, some rock art in there somewhere. But they should also understand that it\u2019s a cultural landscape too.<\/p>\n

When you travel with an Indigenous guide to a sacred ceremonial site, they will often call out to their ancestors to warn them that they\u2019re coming onto their land and that they\u2019re bringing visitors. [Another special experience for many travellers] is a Welcome to Country ceremony. For example, in Mossman Gorge, Far North Queensland, you walk through smoke next to the fire and you\u2019re formally welcomed to Country.<\/p>\n

\"dscf7181\"<\/p>\n

Then you learn how different local plants and animals are used and hear the stories of how Aboriginal custodians look after and respect Country. After this experience, you can travel through the same landscape, but with a different set of eyes. Before you were just looking at trees and rocks, but now you\u2019re open to a whole extra depth of meaning and understanding about the country around you.<\/p>\n

\"australia-trip\"<\/a><\/p>\n

ACF has been working with Traditional Owners\u2019 groups and the Kimberley Land Council to develop new tourism opportunities in the north. How does that work?<\/strong><\/h3>\n

This is the big emerging story \u2013 reclaiming the cultural landscape of Australia. The story has two parts. The foundational story is the huge progress of land reform; that is, Indigenous Australians gaining native title. The Kimberley Land Council\u2019s mission statement has three parts: getting your Country back, looking after Country, and taking control of the future. Getting Country back has been the big shift in the last 20 years. Indigenous protected areas now make up 42% of Australia\u2019s entire National Reserve System.<\/p>\n

\"kimberleytour-7355\"<\/p>\n

The emerging story on top of that \u2013 and it\u2019s in its early days \u2013 is the growth of the cultural economy, which includes tourism. People have got their Country back, they\u2019ve now got Rangers looking after the land, and they\u2019re earning income from reducing greenhouse gases through fire management. \u00a0Now these groups can host visitors and show them how they\u2019re managing Country. But you can\u2019t do this in a remote area without some help from people who know how tourism works.<\/p>\n

Is there a drive from within Indigenous communities to expand tourism in the north?<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Yes, definitely. A lot of Indigenous communities have written what are called Healthy Country Plans. Once they\u2019ve got their Country back, they\u2019ll work with agencies and sit down with the community\u2019s elders to figure out, \u201cNow that we\u2019ve got our Country back, how do we want to take care of it? How do we want to take control of the future?\u201d<\/p>\n

Looking at any of those Healthy Country Plans, I haven\u2019t seen one that doesn\u2019t mention tourism opportunities. There\u2019s a universal desire to welcome visitors and show them what they have, to explain their culture and tell their stories. How you translate that aspiration into authentic, sustainable tourism \u2013 that\u2019s the big challenge for the next ten or 20 years.<\/p>\n

\"img_7253\"<\/p>\n

Tell us about the Indigenous Ranger program.<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The employment of Indigenous Rangers (funded by the federal government since 1996), has been a big growth factor, and a really nice alignment between what Indigenous people want \u2013 what they would call their custodial obligations to look after Country, to keep Country healthy \u2013 and what is in the public interest for Australia, which is the effective management of protected land and national parks \u2013 key assets for the tourism industry.<\/p>\n

The federally funded ranger program currently employs around 770 rangers. Reviews of the ranger program have shown amazing social and financial benefits. These rangers \u2013 including more and more women, especially in the Kimberley \u2013 would otherwise be unemployed and receiving benefits. Even now in the Kimberley, currently employed rangers \u2013 with the permission of their elders \u2013 are looking to develop their own tourism enterprises, which will help diversify income, opportunities and skills.<\/p>\n

So we need to grow tourism in the north, but we\u2019ve got to do it in the right way. Because it\u2019s a fragile environment, right?<\/strong><\/h3>\n

\"img_0052\"<\/p>\n

It is very fragile, particularly because of climate impacts and extreme weather events \u2013 longer dry periods, fires, cyclones, changes in average temperatures which drive up disease, pests, weeds, and so on. Most people don\u2019t realise that northern Australia has the largest intact tropical savannah left on the planet. The savannahs of Africa and Asia have been heavily impacted by human civilisation and development over the years, whereas Australia hasn\u2019t. The combination of woodlands, grasslands, river systems and wetlands make the savannah a very precious environment.<\/p>\n

Just yesterday, the Western Australian government decided to allow gas and oil exploration in national parks like Tunnel Creel and Windjara Gorge. We\u2019re at a fork in the road. There are still powerful players wanting to do the same old \u2013\u00a0 drilling in the Kimberley, using toxic chemicals to frack, creating dams of wastewater, destroying the landscape with access roads\u2026 We need to decide whether we want to go down that road, or down a different one that has tourism at the centre of it.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s your dream for the Kimberley and the future of northern Australia?<\/strong><\/h3>\n

My vision for the north is that, with clean energy opportunities, sustainable fisheries and sustainable pastoralism being one part, and tourism being another, we have an economy that benefits local communities and matches the special type of country it is.<\/p>\n

We can become an example for the rest of the world, and say, \u201cWe got this right, we didn\u2019t destroy it\u201d. And I think we have the chance in the north to take this life-sustaining direction. But time is running out. Indigenous custodians have looked after the land for 50,000 years. Here\u2019s our chance to continue doing it properly.<\/p>\n

To support the good work of ACF in northern Australia, visit The Intrepid Foundation page <\/a>to donate.\u00a0Check out our small group tours in Australia<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"feeling-inspired-2\"<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

While the past 20 years have seen great progress in native title land claims, and protecting our National Parks, the future of Australia’s north is at a crossroads. 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