Organizer: Marcus Barber
Format: Onsite-Online, Afternoon
Abstract:
Sustainable and diversified social and economic development is a primary objective for Indigenous traditional owners on their customary lands. This collaborative session provides presentations and analyses of Indigenous co-research initiatives regarding sustainable solutions and responsible innovation. The session backbone will be provided by work featuring Indigenous communities and corporations across northern Australia partnering with Australia’s national science agency, CSIRO and the North Australian Indigenous Land and Sea Management Alliance (NAILSMA). We focus on key issues underpinning sustainable Indigenous development solutions: diversifying local Indigenous enterprises and livelihoods; imagining sustainable land use transitions; reshaping environmental management challenges to generate economic opportunities; scoping participation in emerging markets; and identifying the benefits of Indigenous cultural and natural resource management. Novel partnerships between Indigenous communities, research agencies, governments, private industry, and non-government organisations are creating Indigenous-led innovation opportunities on the ground. These can: highlight local livelihood success stories; provide the underpinning science to support Indigenous entrepreneurship; empower Indigenous participation in major development initiatives; and identify novel outcomes from natural and cultural resource management. Such research also enhances the profile of Indigenous cultural connections underlying the community wellbeing necessary for successful co-existence. The proposed session would include a combination of short presentations, panel discussion, and question and answer components over 90 minutes. Indigenous co-researchers will lead, present and participate, and the session team would seek further contributors, emphasising impact-oriented research that supports Indigenous peoples and interests to best-practice ethical standards. The session will showcase Indigenous-led and co-developed contributions that highlight current successes, key issues, future possibilities, and the analytical consequences of on-country science and Indigenous Knowledge collaborations with Indigenous peoples.
Themes: Sustainable Solutions from the Global South