Case Studies Working on Country

INDIGENOUS WOMEN RANGERS

Indigenous women across Australia have been looking after their country
for thousands of years. Caring for country is a cultural responsibility that has
been passed down by elders to younger generations and Indigenous women
continue to have an important role in this today.
The Australian Government recognises that womens roles in caring for
country vary across language groups and landscapes. In some regions,
mens and womens ranger groups work separately, with each undertaking
identified cultural and environmental management activities. In other regions,
women rangers work alongside the men.

IND22.0413

The responsibilities undertaken by women rangers include: heritage

managementlooking after sites or places significant for women or associated
with womens stories; assisting with public education; environmental monitoring;
collecting bush tucker; collecting and propagating plants and recording
traditional knowledge.
Nursery djama (work), Dhimurru
Rangers, NT (Photo: Lisa Roeger)

Indigenous women rangers play a vital part in environmental management

and cultural heritage.
Indigenous women make up approximately one quarter of the Working on
Country ranger workforce. The following case studies show
how these women are working as rangers.

Case Studies Working on Country

INDIGENOUS WOMEN RANGERS

Anindilyakwa Women Rangers,
Groote Eylandt, Northern Territory

Ranger, Jocelyn Yantarrnga, tracking the location of a rehabilitated

koala on Stradbroke Island (Photo: Courtesy Anindilyakwa
Women Rangers)

The Anindilyakwa Women Rangers on Groote

Eylandt are passionate about preserving the health
of their country for future generations. They work in
the Anindilyakwa Indigenous Protected Area, which
extends across the Groote Eylandt Archipelago.
With relatively few introduced pests and no cane
toads on the Eylandt, the Women Rangers are in a
unique position to be strongly involved in biodiversity
research and conservation activities.
The Warnindilyakwa women work closely with
scientists from two Queensland universities
researching the ecology of Northern Quoll, Northern
Hopping Mouse and Hawksbill Turtle populations on
the Eylandt. After spending time with researchers
on Stradbroke Island in southeast Queensland, the
women say that Seeing how badly invasive species
can affect the environment makes us want to protect
our country more.
The Women Rangers also help to protect marine and
freshwater species by collecting and removing marine
debris and ghost nets from coastal regions and inland
waterways. These nets are then given to the local
arts centre where they are transformed into beautiful
mats and baskets for sale with profits returning back
to the community.
I like to be a woman ranger because we get to
work out on country
Jocelyn Yantarrnga, Ranger

Nimbin Rocks Aboriginal Rangers

Womens Team, New South Wales

Rangers Keisha Gordon, Linda Phillips and Monica Laurie

(left to right) plant the 10,000th tree, a Brush Cherry
(Photo: Richard Burer)

The Nimbin Rocks Aboriginal Rangers are working

to protect and restore the biodiversity around a
significant cultural and sacred site of the Bundjalung
Nation, in northern New South Wales. The womens
particular responsibilities include collecting, storing
and propagating seeds endemic to the local
region. A flourishing nursery with over 51 species
of seedlings has been established by the womens
team as well as a demonstration bush tucker
orchard featuring finger limes, Davison plums, black
beans and lemon myrtle. On-country visits by female
Bundjalung elders have helped to pass on traditional
knowledge about native plants and their uses.
Hosting school and community days is important in
sharing their culture and pride in country.
Occasionally the women work with the male rangers
to establish new plantings and support environmental
restoration in degraded riparian zones, subtropical
rainforests and sclerophyll forests. They also monitor
weed management, using CyberTracker.
For me to be out there working on my country
which I am a Bundjalung/Widjabul woman of that
countryits a privilege to be working there and
showing people and teaching them about our
elders and our country and about how important
our plants and our food and our animals are to us.
Linda Phillips, Ranger

Case Studies Working on Country

INDIGENOUS WOMEN RANGERS

Nanum Wungthim Land and Sea Rangers, Cape York, Queensland

Ranger, Bronwyn Hall, monitoring turtle populations

(Photo: Courtesy Nanum Wungthim Land and Sea Rangers)

Located in Napranum on the West Coast of Cape

York, the Nanum Wungthim Land and Sea Rangers
are dedicated to looking after their country. Male
and female rangers in Naprunum generally work

alongside each other on country that is fragmented

around a large bauxite mining lease. Together, these
rangers patrol coastal areas to remove ghost nets
and debris and monitor the significant populations of
turtles which include species such as the vulnerable
Flatback and Hawksbill and the endangered Olive
Ridley. The rangers also monitor water quality and
sea grass populations in estuaries and mangroves.
Inland in the eucalyptus forests the rangers work
together controlling weeds. Mapping and maintaining
significant womens cultural heritage sites however,
is a female-only responsibility. When asked about
their motivation for doing this work the women
rangers said:
I love learning about our country and culture
I feel proud to carry on the work of our ancestors
before us

Other examples of women

rangers work can be found
in Indigenous women rangers
talking: Sharing ideas and
information about women
rangers work here.

Muru-warinyi Ankkul Ranger Lisa Rex and family follow an old travelling route during
an Indigenous ecological knowledge walk near Tennant Creek, Central Australia
(Photo: Anna Cadden)
Photo credits (front page): Caring for country, Dhimurru Rangers, NT (Lisa Roeger), Linda selecting seeds to be re-potted, Nimbin Rock Rangers,
NSW (Keshia Gordon), Bringing life back to the land, Nipapanha Rangers group, SA (Dulcie Wilton), turtle tagging and monitoring, Bowen
(Photo Courtesy of the Girringun Rangers)

Commonwealth of Australia 2013

Published February 2013

This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced by any process without
prior written permission from the Commonwealth. Requests and enquiries concerning reproduction and rights should be addressed to
Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Populations and Communities, Public Affairs, GPO Box 787 Canberra ACT 2601
or email public.affairs@environment.gov.au