Caring for Kimberley wetlands together

Wetlands are at the heart of the Kimberley’s culture, nature, and community life, but they are under growing pressure. Environs Kimberley has partnered with the National Environmental Science Program (NESP) Resilient Landscapes Hub and Indigenous ranger teams to create an Indigenous Wetland Monitoring and Management Toolkit, to support and strengthen care of wetlands based on methods tested within the Kimberley Ranger Network.

Kresta Cox using a bore dipper to measure the groundwater level. Photo by Yawuru Country Manager Gaydar Lawford.

Developing an Indigenous wetland monitoring and management toolkit

Wetlands are some of the Kimberley’s most important ecosystems. Rich in living cultural heritage, wildlife and community value, the Kimberley’s wetlands have been cared for by Traditional Owners for thousands of years.

Today, wetlands face growing threats from water development, climate change, weeds, and feral animals. Traditional Owners continue to care for wetlands, with Indigenous ranger teams leading efforts like fire management, fencing, weeding, maintaining Traditional Owner-wetland relationships, and cultural knowledge sharing. A key challenge for these ranger teams is knowing if their management efforts are effective. That is, are their efforts achieving Healthy Country Plan goals to reduce threats and improve freshwater place health?

That’s where this project comes in.

The first workshop to review the Country Managers' bilarra wetland monitoring program, which started in 2018. L-R: Vaughn Lee, Lyall Pedro, Desmond Billy, Rebecca Dobbs (UWA), Kresta Cox and Gaydar Lawford. Photo: Michelle Pyke.

The Toolkit 

Environs Kimberley has partnered with The University of Western Australia (UWA) and Kimberley Indigenous ranger teams on a NESP Resilient Landscapes Hub Project to create an Indigenous Wetland Monitoring and Management Toolkit.

By showcasing the experiences of Kimberley Indigenous teams, the toolkit will:

• provide practical methods for rangers to strategically monitor wetland health
• demonstrate how rangers are measuring the effectiveness of management actions
• show how ranger teams have used a ‘multiple evidence base’ approach to draw on Indigenous knowledge and western science in assessing wetlands
• build ranger team capacity to plan, deliver, and evaluate wetland projects using Healthy Country Planning steps.

By sharing how Kimberley rangers have conducted adaptive wetland management and monitoring, the toolkit will support stronger, Indigenous-led wetland management across the Kimberley and beyond.

Bird life at Mimiyagaman, an important freshwater place fenced by the Country Managers. Photo: Alex Asbury.

A collaborative effort

This project is co-designed with Kimberley ranger teams and builds on more than a decade of collaboration between Environs Kimberley, NESP Resilient Landscapes Hub researchers at UWA, and Indigenous land managers. Guided by Indigenous aspirations for wetland health, it is shaped through workshops, pilot studies, and knowledge-sharing.

The lessons won’t stop in the Kimberley. Outcomes will be shared with ranger groups, communities, and agencies across northern Australia, supporting Indigenous-led wetland management at a national scale.

Why this matters

Wetlands are living systems that connect people, wildlife, and culture. When healthy, they support strong cultural systems, biodiversity, food security, and resilience to climate change. When degraded, the impacts are felt across communities and ecosystems.

By supporting Indigenous rangers’ efforts, this project recognises the critical role that Traditional Owners play in protecting wetlands in the Kimberley, while simultaneously strengthening cultural knowledge and community leadership. The Indigenous Wetland Monitoring and Management Toolkit is not just a scientific resource, it is a pathway to celebrate and support communities in caring for Country in a changing world.