A legally binding conservation agreement between the Australian Government Environment Minister and a private landholder for the protection and conservation of biodiversity in an area of land or sea. A conservation agreement protects biodiversity and heritage values. Some large-scale examples are declared World Heritage properties or the ecological character of a declared Ramsar wetland or other common habitat/ biodiversity values on private property. See also National Reserve System.
The National Reserve System offers private landholders, particularly farmers and graziers, conservation agreements to voluntarily place perpetual covenants over parts of their working properties, conserving land for future generations. In return they receive government support, including relief from rates and taxes, possibly infrastructure support, and expert advice.
The Humane Society International Wildlife Land Trust (WLT) Australia is a free and voluntary program to preserve and protect habitats and wildlife on non-reserved and private land in a network of sanctuaries throughout Australia.
Nature Conservancy Australia works with individuals, local communities, government agencies, private corporations, and not-for-profit organisations to protect natural areas, transform management practices and inspire action for the conservation of wildlife, oceans, land and freshwater.
Australian Wildlife Conservancy is a private owner and manager of over 6.5 million hectares of conservation land in the Kimberley, Cape York, Kati Thanda (Lake Eyre) and in the Top End and works to develop and implement a new model for wildlife conservation.
Landcare Australia’s mission is to protect, enhance or restore the natural environment through sustainable agricultural practices, conservation activities, including expertise with revegetation, and fostering community spirit.
* Land for Wildlife in states and the Northern Territory offers landholders and managers a voluntary, free and non-legally binding program to create or protect wildlife habitats on public and private property. The scheme offers property assessment and advice whether for a farm, a bush block, a council park, or a school ground.
The Private Protected Area Program is a state government voluntary conservation covenanting program. The program encourages private landholders to conserve their land through the declaration of nature refuges or special wildlife reserves. Financial incentives may be offered through the Nature Assist program or Nature Refuge Landholder Grants (NRLG).
Queensland Water and Land Carers (QWaLC) offers representation, advocacy, promotion, networking and insurance administration in community-based approaches to create more productive and sustainable farms, conservation and managing and protecting natural resources.
The Biodiversity Conservation Trust offers legally binding conservation covenants between the NSW state government and private landholders. These agreements include Biodiversity Stewardship, Conservation and Wildlife Refuges.
*Land for Wildlife voluntary, free and non-legally binding program to create or protect wildlife habitats on public and private property. Offers property assessment and advice whether for a farm, a bush block, a council park, or a school ground.
In NSW regional activities are coordinated state-wide by the Community Environment Network (CEN). Contact CEN for your regional coordinating agency.
CEN:
PO Box 149 Ourimbah,
NSW 2258
*Notable that the ACT, that kills kangaroos, does not have a habitat-focused Land for Wildlife or support for private conservation programs that we can find.
Land for Wildlife (Vic) similar program to NSW and Qld – above. Victoria’s program is run directly by the state government. Contact it for regional/local coordinators.
Land for Wildlife State Coordinator details:
Department of Environment Land, Water and Planning
Peter Johnson
Trust for Nature (TFN) works with private landholders and government agencies to protect and restore native plant and wildlife habitats in Victoria. TFN negotiates permanent and legally binding covenants between TFN and landowners and managers. TFN also purchases private properties with unique conservation value, to restore and re-sell with perpetual conservation covenants.
Land for Wildlife (Tas), similar program to that in other states, above. Delivered by Tasmanian Land Conservancy. Landholders benefit from onsite assessments and advice about land management, species and habitats.
Tasmanian Land Conservancy
Based in Lower Sandy Bay, TAS
State government program offering conservation covenants to manage and protect native flora and fauna, natural wetlands, and geo conservation areas. Covenants are legally binding and are usually permanent, unless registered for a fixed term. Members benefit from land tax exemptions, rate rebates (in some council areas), support and advice.
Private Land Conservation.
Similar program to those above, Kangaroo Island Land for Wildlife (KI LfW) is a voluntary, biodiversity conservation program that supports landholders with assessment and advice.
State government voluntary program encouraging and assisting private or public landowners to provide habitats for wildlife on their property. Sanctuaries are declared on land containing areas of established habitat where landowners are committed to conservation management.
Department of Environment and Water South Australia
Land for Wildlife (Top End) is managed by Territory Natural Resource Management for retention of habitat and promoting wildlife awareness and education. The program covers residential and rural blocks, conservation reserves, woodland, riverine landscapes, lagoons, sand sheet, coastal vine thicket and monsoon rainforest.
Territory Natural Resource Management
TCAs support land managers to protect areas of ecologically significant habitat, including wetlands and rivers, escarpment country and woodland. TCAs are 10-year voluntary agreements between Territory Natural Resource Management (TNRM) and private landowners. The program is funded through the Australian Government’s National Landcare Program.
Land for Wildlife (WA) is coordinated through the Department of Parks and Wildlife and Natural Resource Management (now Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions), for landholders to retain and provide wildlife habitat on their property.
Land for Wildlife Coordinator
Species and Communities Branch
Private landowners and the WA Commissioner of Soil and Land Conservation establish conservation agreements for specified habitat areas. There are two types of covenants: Conservation Covenants (irrevocable) and Agreement to Reserve (ATR), which can be for perpetuity, or for specified time frames.
The Australian Wildlife Protection Council (AWPC) – that publishes this resource list – a national not-for-profit organisation dedicated to education and advocacy as a voice for Australian wildlife and its habitat. Working to stop persecution of some of Australia’s best-known native animals, not yet listed as endangered, has been a long-term focus. Re-establishing respect for and co-existence with all Australia’s unique animals and natural ecosystems are key goals.
HSI is an international animal advocacy and conservation not-for-profit. In Australia, HSI works to protect on-land and marine wildlife and its habitat. Facilitates a habitat conservation program, Wildlife Land Trust. HSI is also active in bushfire and disaster recovery for animals and works also to protect animals in agriculture.
A national not-for-profit dedicated to animal protection and to exposing cruelty against animals, particularly focused on farm and livestock animals, e.g. live export trade, and caged hens. Increasing focus on Australian wildlife, grants to smaller groups, submissions, disaster assistance, exposure of hunting and cruel practices against wildlife.
Voiceless is an animal protection charity in Australia that has focused on education and legal aspects of animal protection and has moved into grant-making for animal campaigns as a primary focus. Animal law research material and education resources remain on its website. Note Voiceless is not a legal advisory service.
People can subscribe to their mailing list or follow Voiceless on social media.
With kangaroos (and dingos) now Australia’s most exploited and persecuted indigenous wildlife – a situation supported by government policies – much citizen research and advocacy has been dedicated to documenting the situation and to helping these animals regain respect and enjoy peaceful co-existence. Here are some online dedicated resources. See other resources with more general advocacy groups, books and films.
THINKK, published by scientists, is an archive of research and review documents about kangaroo treatment in Australia. The archive critically reviews the scientific evidence underpinning kangaroo management practices and issues with the commercial kangaroo industry including unhygienic field conditions. It also explores non-lethal management options that are consistent with ecology, animal welfare, human health, and ethics.
AJP in the ACT, NSW, Victoria and Queensland initiated campaigns for kangaroos. In NSW, elected AJP representatives did the groundwork for a detailed and damning 2020 state legislative review into commercial and non-commercial kangaroo ‘management’ and welfare, that yielded much information but reform has yet to happen.
Advocacy, public awareness campaigns nationally and internationally against kangaroo commercial and non-commercial killing. Established by producers of film Kangaroo: A love-hate story. Organises World Kangaroo Day end of October.
Along with the Animal Justice Party NSW and independent scientific advisors, has been pursuing an awareness campaign in the European Union to stop countries buying kangaroo meat. Europe is now the biggest market for kangaroo meat.
Kangaroos at Risk – an independent scientific and cultural research project offering resource material on kangaroo history, science and management and provides analysis and critique of the evidence shaping the kangaroo space.
Animal defender based in Canberra. Campaigns and educates for all animals and particularly against the Australian Capital Territory government’s annual kangaroo killing program on suburban public reserves where the national icon is shot and kangaroo pouch joeys bludgeoned to death. — a situation that is still little known outside Australia’s national capital.
APA advocates in collaboration with Animal Liberation ACT, Save Canberra’s Kangaroos and, for legal issues with the Animal Defenders Office (ADO) in Canberra.
A FB page for a collaborative campaign between all the defenders of ACT kangaroos with combined efforts to pressure the ACT government to stop the killing. Also initiator of a citizen science project to count kangaroos in ACT reserves that challenge inflated official numbers.
Group advocating for kangaroos in Melbourne eastern region, in Victoria and nationally. Great kanga-focused website and Facebook for ongoing campaign information.
The Mornington Peninsula Wildlife Action Group (MPWAG) count your mob project collects long-term data to assess kangaroo populations, distribution, behaviour, and seasonal movements on the Mornington Peninsula. Anyone can participate by counting macropods and submitting a photo that records the time and location.
Kanga Watch Inc. was particularly active in Victoria and in Qld with a co-founder Lyn Gynther, having first-hand experienced in the kangaroo industry, featured in film Kangaroo: a love– hate story and also in book Injustice, hidden in plain sight the war on Australian nature…. Kanga Watch objective is legislative change to counter macropod killings.
Creative cowboy films’ Nature Knowledge Channel is an international resource that provides detailed analysis of the circumstances for wildlife alongside stories, films and the voices of the people dedicated to wildlife conservation.
Some of above organisations and other not-for-profits that work for kangaroos are listed with links at International Kangaroo Protection Alliance (IKPA).
The Kangaroo Trail project, developed by the Australian Wildlife Protection Council and Dr David Croft promotes ‘rootourism’ and education about the remaining species of kangaroos in Australia. Tourists and locals alike can use the trail map to visit unique habitats and see kangaroos while supporting local tourism.
Based in California, the Center for a Humane Economy conducts a global kangaroo consumer campaign aimed at sports shoe businesses that use ‘k leather’, kangaroo leather, (traditionally Adidas Nike, Puma etc.).
UK Vegan animal advocacy group. Championed kangaroos since the 1990s and convinced UK supermarkets to stop carrying kangaroo products.
Animal Liberation NSW have an active program of information and advocacy against government policies to poison with 1080 and shoot the Australian indigenous companion, the dingo. The resources also educate why 1080 is so awful and widely toxic that it has been banned in almost all countries except Australia and New Zealand which use it extensively.
President: Marilyn Nuske; Secretary: Dr Ernest Healey
Dingo sanctuaries can be found by a search on the internet.
Branches in states —- see above entry for kangaroos. Also advocate legislative change for dingoes, non-wildlife animals.
WPSQ campaign for the survival of wildlife and ecosystems by monitoring wildlife populations consulting with government and speaking out against habitat destruction. WPSQ is not a wildlife rescue or care organisation but are happy to connect you with services and support.
Wildlife Victoria’s emergency response phone line provides 24 hours a day, 7 days a week access for reporting injured, sick and orphaned wildlife. This service includes both the Melbourne metro area and rural Victoria.
Find a bird or a local branch of Birdlife Australia and much educational information.
Citizen group in south-west Western Australia working for the endangered Gilbert’s Potoroo. May be one model for citizen action.
Koalas, having been brought to the brink of endangered status or are regionally extinct, have many groups rescuing and providing sanctuaries and supporting.
Check the internet for regional, state-based sanctuaries and hospitals. Good place to start is:
Citizen group in south-west Western Australia working for the endangered Gilbert’s Potoroo. May be one model for citizen action.
Story on AWPC website about 2020 fire at Two Thumbs Koala Sanctuary, Peak Hill.
Based in the Adelaide Hills. The Wombat Awareness Organisation (WAO) specialises in the rescue, rehabilitation and advocacy of the Southern Hairy-Nosed Wombat. Focus on conserving and protecting wild wombats whilst supporting a 24-hour rescue and rehabilitation centre within the largest and only free-range, cage-free wombat sanctuary.
Based in NSW, WPSA is a national organisation for the protection/’harm prevention’ of wombats through education, research and public awareness. They fund suitable habitat and research projects – check website. Combating mange is a top research and education objective.
Information on raising/ caring for and releasing bare-nosed wombats.
Warriors 4 Wildlife lists the contact phone numbers of wildlife rescuers, carers and shelters nationwide. It is a great resource for members of the public needing advice or rescue for wildlife that is sick, injured or orphaned in their local area.
The State-wide Integrated Flora and Fauna Teams (SWIFFT) is a free network for knowledge sharing and information exchange that supports conservation and management of threatened species, biodiversity, and the natural environment across Victoria.
A free legal service for initial advice to citizens about issues affecting the natural environment including wildlife and habitat and possible remedies. Can provide advice on how federal and state laws apply to aspects of the environment e.g; on land-clearing, other developments affecting the natural environment, wildlife killing .and habitat destruction.
A Guide to Private Land Conservation for Landholders (2021)
Free initial legal advice to landholders who are considering entering a legally binding private conservation agreement. Further to that, landholders need to seek private legal, tax and financial advice based on their individual circumstances. See the guide (link below) for conservation programs in your region.
Not-for-profit, national office for animal legal issues, based in Canberra
At the time of publication, listed were law organisations with interest and expertise on native animal issues in Australia.
(AWPC does not guarantee these services continue, but offers this list as indicative for further exploration).
Documentary journalist and author Maria Taylor’s 2021 book Injustice, hidden in plain sight, the war on Australian nature unveils a cultural history of warfare against Australia’s other indigenous inhabitants – Australian wildlife. Her investigation draws on an archive of evidence collected by the Australian Wildlife Protection Council and from other documentary sources and testimony.
It exposes a history of wildlife exploitation and removal since settlement and the narratives that are spun to the public justifying wildlife and biodiversity destruction. The history has left Australians today owning the world’s largest on-land wildlife trade – kangaroos slaughtered for shoe leather, human and pet food. Koalas suffered a similar commercial hunt up to the 1930s and have never recovered. Told through the voices of citizen activists, first Australians, scientists, authors, graziers and industry whistle-blowers.
Here too are paths to reconciliation and sharing that marry ecological and economic concerns.
The bibliography lists many useful books and other records of Australian wildlife from the history of colonial settlement.
Written for general public and educational use.
Maria is an active member of AWPC and can also be reached via the contact page.
An anthology of essays by scientific and civilian experts on kangaroos and their treatment in Australia. One of the books published by the AWPC in the 1990s and early 2000s. Suitable for general public and educational use. AWPC has copies available and free copies will be shipped to schools and libraries. Others by donation.
Second edition by Terrence J Dawson. Natural history, biology, population studies and behaviour of the unique hopping marsupials. CSIRO Publishing.
This publication is a chapter in the 2013 book Ignoring Nature No More: The Case for Compassionate Conservation. Zoology researchers present case studies of wildlife management in Australasia to explore the goals of animal welfare and animal conservation science concerning wild and free-living animals.
A new historical novel exploring how Australians have come to accept the killing of native Australian wildlife, even within reserved places such as national parks.
The story comes from Peter Preuss, a former president of the Australian Wildlife Protection Council. It tells of a citizen campaign to stop the killings by government forces in the 1980s in Hattah-Kulkyne National Park in Victoria.
In the 1980s scientific, conservation and animal welfare movements came together to question and stop the killing of wildlife and specifically of kangaroos. The citizen campaign that unfolds in the book ultimately failed and parks and wildlife services have continued to kill kangaroos under the guise of a ‘management tool’ accepted as standard practice in national parks and reserves across the country.
Copies available via:
If buying from the author, $5 from the sale of each book will be donated to the wildlife conservation or animal welfare organisation of your choice.
The Animals’ Agenda will educate and inspire people to rethink how we affect other animals, and how we can evolve toward more peaceful and less violent ways of interacting with our animal kin in an increasingly human-dominated world. Written by
A 2015 book by photographer and wildlife campaigner Jennifer Parkhurst exploring the life of the dingoes on Fraser Island and their relationship to the First Nations people of that area. Beautiful photography.
(Publication was supported by AWPC)
Also found on Amazon.com and other retailers via an internet search.
Written by Josef Lasarow is a little book with terrific photography in praise of the Australian dingo and its natural history. Along with kangaroos, dingoes are the most persecuted Australian native wildlife (dingoes driven to endangered species listing). This book provides a much-needed antidote of respect and understanding along with a theory about the role of dingoes as top predator in stable Australian ecosystems. A book suitable for all ages.
Available via Amazon, Booktopia, Dymocks, Fishpond.
Voiceless has a digital bookshop of publications relating to animal welfare and law.
Ethell C Pedley’s 1899 Australian classic children’s book about a little girl named Dot who gets lost in the outback and is eventually befriended by a kangaroo and several other marsupials. Compassionate and compelling historical view. The book was adapted into a film in 1977.
‘The little helpers’ is a new series of climate-conscious children’s books written to support the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. The little helpers: Kati helps avoid hunger (2021) follows Kati the kangaroo on her mission to help her friend Keli the koala to find ever dwindling eucalyptus leaves to eat. Endorsed by the Australian Wildlife Protection Council, this story shows children how cooperation and conservation can be lots of fun through the colourful animal characters.
Margaret Warner, a writer, teacher, and wildlife carer, has published children’s fiction, non-fiction and educational books including Wombat tracks, Possum tails, Kangaroo footprints, Noises in the night and various Australian wildlife activity books.
AWPC welcomes suggestions for additions to this list of children’s books that assist learning about Australian wildlife as well as being a good read.
In 2014, Gunditjmara southwest Victorian man Joel Wright, spoke to the Australian Wildlife Protection Council to explain misconceptions about Indigenous fire-stick farming and ‘traditional burning’. As an Aboriginal Affairs and language expert, Wright examined historical records to find little justification for the regime of planned burns of Victorian forests at the hands of the state government.
This award-winning film captures the untold love-hate story of Australia’s most famous national icon. Kangaroo exposes the divisive opinions around this unique Australian icon, subject to the largest mass destruction of terrestrial wildlife in the world. A must see for all animal lovers and advocates. Available to buy or rent at the links below.
Hosted by Aaron Pedersen. Mines the ABC’s excellent library of wildlife cinematography during the past decades with new narratives.
Examines the apocalyptic forces that nature inflicts upon the Australian landscape. Australian wildlife must adapt rapidly to survive the impacts of climate change, drought and flood.
Life in Australia is a battle. Shaped by the challenges of epic environments the creatures of the island continent compete for mating rights, to eat, and avoid being eaten.
This series explores some of Australia’s most fascinating animals; From the mysterious (and misunderstood) orca to the iconic kangaroo, parrots of high intelligence and the secret lives of reptiles, all have evolved and survived across the harsh Australian landscape.
Aaron Pedersen explores Australian places of
ecological significance and natural beauty and the diverse and unique animals
adapted to such habitats.
Delves into the incredible diversity of oceanic wildlife and how life changes for creatures along the coast and beneath the surface as environmental changes heat the ocean.
Interview by The World Today host Sara Everingham in 2008, kangaroo advocates Dr David Croft and Maryland Wilson detail the ‘The Kangaroo Trail’. The project aims to promote and provide education about ‘roo tourism’ and the 50 species of kangaroos we have in Australia. Tourists and locals alike can use the trail map to visit unique habitats and see kangaroos while supporting local tourism.
Are you an organisation that would like to be considered for our resource list? Is your information on our list up-to-date? Please contact us.
