Supporting Indigenous people’s participation in environmental markets

Project 3.20

The challenge:

The Blue Carbon and Environmental Repair market frameworks that are part of Australia’s greenhouse gas reduction strategy, present great opportunities for Indigenous communities to fund land and sea country management.

However, for Indigenous organisations to participate in these markets, they must be empowered to navigate legislation, regulations, land tenures, resource ownership, co-benefits, and informed consent; with confidence, and through clearly defined processes.

It is timely for these complex issues to be considered and investigated, to ensure that a lack of readiness does not exclude Indigenous land and sea management programs from these rapidly evolving markets.

Requiring simultaneous attention, is a potential lack of security of Indigenous tenure and relevant environmental data, with an associated risk of information loss to others. Private, non-Indigenous market competitors, may exploit this insecurity to advance their own agenda and thus gain advantage over Indigenous interests.

To empower Indigenous organisations’ participation in environmental markets, this project identifies and addresses the gaps in knowledge, and considers information security and related risks.

The approach:

The project will build the foundation knowledge, networks and processes required for participation in Blue Carbon and Environmental Repair markets, by undertaking a collaborative program that:

• identifies and addresses knowledge gaps;
• co-designs participation processes and guides;
• synthesises Indigenous people’s interests and rights for the public, for increased awareness;
• creates relevant information products for regions, including maps and reports;
• considers and defines protocols for free, prior and informed consent; and
• identifies and aligns components relevant to both Blue Carbon and Environmental markets.

Expected outcomes:

Supported management of country by Indigenous managers.

Facilitation of Indigenous involvement in Blue Carbon markets.

Collaborative creation of a new framework for decision-making by Indigenous country managers.