Sustainable Indigenous Livelihoods from north Australian land and water resources – Towards a Research and Development Agenda and Implementation Strategy

Sustainable Indigenous Livelihoods from north Australian land and water resources – Towards a Research and Development Agenda and Implementation Strategy Report

NAILSMA Knowledge Series

• Author(s): R. Greiner, O. Stanley, B. Austin, NAILSMA
• Published: 2012
• Publisher: North Australian Indigenous Land and Sea Management Alliance Ltd. (NAILSMA)

Link to resource Report broken link

Abstract: This report results from a project which set out to: (i) articulate Indigenous social and economic aspirations with respect to water in northern Australia; and (ii) develop a ‘sustainable Indigenous livelihoods’ research and development agenda and implementation strategy. The project was funded by the National Water Commission (NWC) as part of the Northern Australia Water Futures Assessment’s (NAWFA’s) Cultural and Social program and administered through the North Australian Indigenous Land and Sea Management Alliance (NAILSMA). The project ran from October 2011 to March 2012. It combined a consultative process with NAILSMA’s partner organisations and review of relevant literature and other documents. In particular, regional workshops were conducted for Cape York, the Gulf of Carpentaria, the Top End of the Northern Territory and the Kimberley. Regional workshop contributions were further consolidated in two whole-of-northern Australia integration workshops. Through the definition of its scope and broad methodological approach, the project focused on a Traditional Owner perspective of Indigenous aspirations. It did not deal with Indigenous people living in urban centres and/or those isolated from traditional lands in northern Australia. The project task was conceptualised within a livelihoods-and-wellbeing framework. The project conceived the term livelihoods as being broader than income from employment, enterprise or other means. Consistent with the literature, Livelihoods were defined as entailing five types of assets or capitals. - Natural capital: refers to the stocks and flows of natural resources that support activities that contribute to livelihoods. - Social capital: refers to the governance structures and processes, norms and networks that enable people to act collectively. - Human capital: refers to the skills, knowledge and health embodied by people that contributes to their ability to engage in livelihood activities through labour. - Financial capital: describes the financial resources accessed by people to create livelihoods and that can be used to access other resources. - Physical capital: refers to both the infrastructure and tools and equipment used by people in their livelihood activities.

• Urls: https://web.archive.org/web/20180517090529/https://www.nailsma.org.au/sites/default/files/publications/KS%2008%2012%20SIL%20RD%20Agenda%20%20Implementation%20Strategy.pdf, https://web.archive.org/web/20160426091308/http://nailsma.org.au/hub/resources/publication/sustainable-indigenous-livelihoods-north-australian-land-and-water
• Publisher Location: Darwin