Dear friends,
Great news for CRCs
The Federal Government’s review of CRCs has produced a
ringing endorsement for collaborative research – and for
public good research in particular.
I’d like to warmly commend Professor Mary O’Kane,
who chaired the review, for her clear-sighted grasp of the value of
this model for doing science - and for how it can benefit Australia
as a whole. The heavy accent on commercial outcomes in recent years
made the outlook for ‘public good’ CRCs doubtful, and
we now head into our renewal bid with fresh confidence. In
particular, we at DKCRC welcome the renewed emphasis on
pre-competitive research and wide adoption.
Key recommendations of the review are:
- to continue the CRC program with extra funding
- to reinstate public good research as a selection criteria
- to position CRC research in the pre-competitive/pre-application
space to encourage wide adoption rather than a narrow focus on
commercialisation
- to adopt flexible time frames (4–7 years) to a maximum
funding life of 10 years
- to tackle significant risks and challenges as identified by
users.
See: www.innovation.gov.au/innovationreview.
Groundbreaking at Garma
Groundbreaking findings by DKCRC were unveiled at this
week’s Garma Festival of Traditional Culture in the NT to
show that keeping the connection strong between Aboriginal people
and their traditional country can make a big contribution in the
fight against chronic disease and social dislocation.
Research leader Dr Jocelyn Davies said there is clear evidence that
‘caring for country’ has a critical – and
quantifiable – role to play in improving the health and
wellbeing of Aboriginal people: “It all begins with the
desert Aboriginal worldview, which holds that everything comes from
the land – all laws, ties of kinship, ceremony, food, work,
activity and good health”.
A groundbreaking study of Warlpiri people’s worldview
– ngurra-kurlu – by Steven Jampijinpa Patrick
of Lajamanu, Miles Holmes of University of Queensland and Lance Box
shows why these relationships to country are so important and
highlights their critical role in the inherent motivation and sense
of identity, confidence and wellbeing of desert people. For copies
of this report or to be added to our mailing list please contact
renee.westbrook@csiro.au.
Economist David Campbell presented research showing that helping
people to remain on country could cut health bills by up to $2
million for a community of 1200 over 25 years, through the
reduction in heart disease, diabetes and kidney disease. See:
http://www.desertknowledgecrc.com.au/news/media.html
Walking the Value Chain
A group of bush harvesters and producers from central Australia
has just returned from a groundbreaking tour of the marketers,
processors, distributors, retailers and restaurateurs in the
fast-growing bush foods industry. The trip was designed to give
people involved in producing bush foods a hands-on feel for the
complexities and challenges involved in delivering bush tucker from
the deserts to high-price urban markets where demand is really
taking off, says program leader Jenny Cleary. “We learned a
lot about the importance of maintaining continuity of supply, with
products as incredibly variable as wild-grown bush tomatoes,”
she says. “Our harvesters were delighted – they had no
idea there was so much whitefella interest in bush
tucker.”
Hands across the Ditch
DKCRC’s Prof. Murray McGregor recently
presented an invited paper at the New Zealand Geographical Society
Conference in Wellington on the role of participatory research in
creating sustainable livelihoods in desert Australia. He then
took part in discussion with East Coast Maori horticultural growers
who have chosen organic vegetable production as a way to improve
their social and economic situation. Murray says there are strong
parallels between the New Zealand project and DKCRC’s bush
foods project. Links will be maintained between the groups and
funds sought to undertake a linkage similar to our own “Hands
Across the Desert”. He suggests it could aptly be called
“Hands across the Ditch”.
Aboriginal enterprises
DKCRC’s submission to the Federal Parliamentary Committee
Inquiry into Aboriginal business argues that while there are many
initiatives to help desert enterprises, there is also a degree of
confusion among their customers and in some of the approaches being
taken. We also see a need to take advantage of opportunities
created by the national skills shortage. DKCRC ran workshops
involving industry, government (state, federal and local),
companies and organisations operating in desert Australia in an
attempt to paint a picture of work and livelihood in desert areas.
The full submission is available at:
http://www.desertknowledgecrc.com.au/news/downloads/DKCRC-Submission-to-HRSCATSIA-Indigenous-Enterprises-Inquiry.pdf
Water knowhow
DKCRC has just released a new book showing how
people in remote desert settlements can look after their own water
supplies in a practical, low cost, safe and healthy way. The Water
Handbook is a do-it-yourself guide driven by local communities to
help people living and working in small, remote settlements to
develop a water management plan that meets their special needs. It
was developed by Robyn Grey-Gardner.
Robyn’s research shows that remote Aboriginal communities are
much better at managing their water supply to keep it safe and
clean if they are given the responsibility of looking after it and
setting their own goals. Her two-year study shows that a long
legacy of water management decisions for remote settlements taken
by distant agencies has disabled initiative in some settlements,
despite plenty of local skills being available.
“The key lies in giving residents the responsibility for
looking after their own water and allowing them to put into
practice their own water management plans,” says Robyn.
Her findings will be presented at a symposium in Adelaide this week
(August 14–15).
Copies of The Water Handbook can be downloaded from
http://www.desertknowledgecrc.com.au/research/settlements.html
Printed copies available from: renee.westbrook@csiro.au
Precision progress
Last week Andy Bubb and I travelled to Napperby Station to
inspect progress with the automatic cattle drafter and
walk-over-weighing system, which are part of our Precision
pastoralism project that recently received accolades on ABC's
Landline program. Significant improvements have been made to the
drafter by Tim Driver and Phil Dowling who are based at the station
to aid the development. While at the cattle yards we saw around 30
animals pass through the system, giving a practical demonstration
of how it works and how calm the cattle are when walking through
it. This is an exciting area of research for the DKCRC which will
deliver significant outcomes for the pastoral industry.
And don’t forget ...
With more regions of the Earth facing dry times under climate
change, desert thinking and desert solutions are more relevant and
valuable than ever. For the best ideas on offer, book now for
DKCRC’s Desert Symposium Rethinking the future, Alice Springs
November 3–6, 2008: http://www.desertknowledge2008.com.
Latest DKCRC publications
Presentations
|
| Davies J, LaFlamme M and Campbell D |
International Grassland Conference_International Rangeland
Conference_Hohhot: Health of people and land through sustainable
Aboriginal livelihoods in Rangeland Australia [
pps 1.9 Mb] |
| Davies J, LaFlamme M and Campbell D |
International Grasslands Congress_International Rangeland
Congress_Hohhot: Health of people and land through sustainable
Aboriginal livelihoods in Rangeland Australia_notes [
pdf 1.6 Mb] |
| James C, Ashley M, Bastin G et al |
International Rangelands Conference_Hohhot: Information
technologies for rangeland monitoring: what is available and what
will be available in the future [
pps 5.1 Mb] |
| McGregor M |
New Zealand Geographical Society Conference_Wellington:
Reflection on the Role of Participatory Research in Creating
Sustainable Livelihoods in Desert Australia [
pdf 1.6 Mb] |
| Ferguson J |
20th Annual Rural Policy Conference of the Canadian
Revitalisation Foundation and the National Rural Research
Network_Inuvik, Canada: Desert Knowledge CRC [
pps 4.8 Mb] |
Submissions
|
|
DKCRC Regional telecommunications submission July 2008 [pdf
106.1 kb] |
|
DKCRC Submission to HRSCATSIA Indigenous Enterprises Inquiry
[pdf 245.8 kb] |
| |
|
Reports
|
| Pearce M, Willis E, McCarthy C, Ryan F, Wadham B |
DKCRC Report 36: National Water Initiative Response.pdf
[pdf
5.5 Mb] |
| Pawu-Kurlpurlurnu WJ, Holmes M and Box L |
DKCRC Report 41: Ngurra-kurlu_A way of working with Warlpiri
people [
pdf 3.3 Mb] |
WaterSmart Pastoralism™
|
Handbook
|
WaterSmart Pastoralism
Handbook
[pdf 8.2 Mb] |
Core Project 1: Livelihoods inLand™
|
List of publications and presentations
|
http://www.desertknowledgecrc.com.au/research/inlandpublications.html
|
Annotated bibliography
|
http://www.desertknowledgecrc.com.au/research/annotatedbibliography.html
|
Sustainable Livelihoods Framework
|
http://www.desertknowledgecrc.com.au/research/slf.html
|
Miscellaneous
|
Student thesis
|
Bronwyn Anderson-Smith: Exploring engagement between
Indigenous communities and government: lessons for Country
management [
pdf 629.0 kb] |
Desert Fire EndNote library
|
Desert Fire
Bibliography EndNote Database |
Media releases
|
| DKCRC MR
August 10_Living on country pays off [pdf 166.4 kb] |
| DKCRC
MR August 10_Health happiness from the desert [pdf 200.3
kb] |
|
DKCRC Media Release August 6_The good oil on remote water [pdf
175.6 kb] |
Kind regards
Jan
