Healing Country: The value of water modelling to showcase Githabul People's traditional knowledge of land and water practices

The Githabul People, based on an area straddling the Border Rangers area of Queensland and NSW, has long had a focus on sustaining their indigenous knowledge and land and water practices for managing country.  In a recent collaboration with consulting companies NGH, BMT and Border Rangers Contractors, the Githabul's long term ambition for Healing Country was a core focus to guide options to build local capability and supporting tools for their people to utilise.     

This webinar aims to showcase steps taken by this QWMN supported project to build a mix of foundational resources that enable Githabul People to Heal Country.

Aspects of this collaboration that are of particular interest include:

• establishing ongoing relationships, trust and connection with all the partners,
• ways to develop a common language between traditional ecological knowledge and water modelling tools, and
• GIS mapping tools and locally relevant water monitoring options.

Through a series of conversations with the project team, and your questions throughout the session, we aim to hear:

• what was undertaken during this collaboration, 
• the key features that enabled this collaboration to progress, and 
• how might this work in other places.  

Our guests speakers from the project team are:

1. Melissa Chalmers - Cultural Heritage Coordinator, Githabul Nation Aboriginal Corporation - with a strong passion and responsibility for water, Melissa is eager to have capability needs designed that will allow her Rangers and others to continue and evolve their long term efforts of Healing Country.
2. Shoshanna Grounds - Qld Practice Lead, Heritage and Communities, NGH - having worked with Githabul People previously on other planning and approval projects, Shoshanna understands the unique features of this country.  In coordinating this project Shoshanna was eager to ensure this enhanced capability be a vital feature that allows the Githabul People to be actively sought out by other agencies for future ongoing land and water plans and initiatives in this region. 
   
3. Emma McCall - Engineer, BMT - utilised water models to test different land and water options that can be used in the area and also looked at the data/information monitoring needs that could capture traditional ecological knowledge and be used in testing options.

This collaboration on healing country is a timely example of what can be readily achieved when all partners can pool their various skills.  I am sure you will be both curious and interested to hear what is possible and what might be extended to other engagements like this.