Dr Nathan Wong, Djandak, Dja Dja Wurrung Clans Aboriginal Corporation

Djandak Wi at Tang Tang. This image was taken following the Right Plant Right Way workshop which gathers First Nations from across Victoria to understand how the current revegetation sector works and to plan and vision a pathway forward to enable the sector to walk with First Nations on a journey to Heal Country.  The image represents the giving and healing of Country that is within the Coolamon, seed and fire.

We are facing a new fire regime in the context of climate change and transformed landscapes and there is an urgent need for a cultural re-conceptualising of landscape. Fire is a critical element for restoring resilience of transformed landscapes and managing country the right way.

We explore and provide a deeper understanding of how the concept of wildfire risk management is changing, explore how the role of cultural burning as an accepted and adopted fire management strategy can be considered.  We also consider the barriers to wider adoption by fire agencies, community stakeholders and land managers. Our primary aim is to better understand how a transition to a climate changed future can be led by cultural knowledge centering cultural burning as a mobilized and integrated approach across the wider landscape and fire risk management approaches.

Djandak Wi at Tang Tang. This photo shows the first night wi (fire) that Djandak has undertaken. The photo looks to capture the healing that occurs when Djaara return their practice to Djandak (Country).

We are facing a new fire regime in the context of climate change and transformed landscapes and there is an urgent need for a cultural re-conceptualising of landscape. Fire is a critical element for restoring resilience of transformed landscapes and managing country the right way.

We explore and provide a deeper understanding of how the concept of wildfire risk management is changing, explore how the role of cultural burning as an accepted and adopted fire management strategy can be considered.  We also consider the barriers to wider adoption by fire agencies, community stakeholders and land managers. Our primary aim is to better understand how a transition to a climate changed future can be led by cultural knowledge centering cultural burning as a mobilized and integrated approach across the wider landscape and fire risk management approaches.

This piece has been extracted from an online gallery of images from Indigenous ecological practitioners around Australia. Images in this collection tell the stories of programs continuing, reviving and protecting the ecological practices and knowledge held by First Nations people for millennia – consult the full gallery here.