21 September 2018

Do Indigenous Land and Sea Management programs (ILSMPs), known for their ecological importance, also help promote Indigenous economic independence? The short answer is – yes. A new paper published in The Rangeland Journal by Hub researcher Dr Diane Jarvis and others shows that expenditure on ILSMPs generates positive spill-overs for other Indigenous businesses, even those not engaged in land management – suggesting that ILSMPs may help promote self-sustaining growth cycles and Indigenous economic independence. Dr Jarvis recently won the Best Early Career Researcher award at James Cook University’s Division of Tropical Environments and Societies Three-Minute Thesis competition for her presentation on this and the regional economic impact of ILSMPs. This work is part of a Hub project led by Professor Natalie Stoeckl of James Cook University investigating the multiple benefits of ILSMPs. For more information, see the policy note arising from this paper as well as the latest science summary from this project.