Having a yarn: The importance of appropriate engagement and participation in the development of Indigenous driven environmental policy, Queensland, Australia

Abstract

Across Australia, Indigenous peoples have responsibility for managing country4. Increasingly, policy partnerships between management agencies, mining companies, conservation groups and the pastoral industry are being brokered with traditional owners of land and sea. The successful outcome of these policies necessitates the implementation of participative and culturally appropriate and professional processes of engagement with Indigenous communities. This includes addressing local modes of governance and community relations. This paper compares two Indigenous resource management initiatives with a view to promoting an understanding of the concept of engagement and participative practices in Indigenous communities. It argues that engagement processes in policy need to go beyond ‘having a yarn’ and address deeper issues of social justice and equity in order to achieve conservation outcomes. It concludes with a framework for policy engagement based on the principles of social justice and biodiversity protection.