wayfinders circle governance report english - Flipbook - Page 16
Warddeken Governance
The Warddeken Indigenous Protected Area is part of Arnhem Land, a vast
Indigenous territory over twice the size of Switzerland in northern Australia, and
home to Indigenous cultures dating back over 65,000 years. The Nawarddeken are
the traditional owners of Warddeken, and make up 36 clan groups of the Bininj
Kunwok language group. In 2009 they created the Warddeken Indigenous Protected
Area, including 1,394,951 hectares of spectacular stone and gorge on the West
Arnhem Plateau, immediately east of Kakadu National Park. The plateau is home to
numerous threatened species, and is of great cultural significance as thousands of
rock art sites tell stories and record the way Indigenous peoples lived tens of
thousands of years ago—these are some of the richest density of rock art galleries in
the world.
The Aboriginal peoples of Warddeken use ceremonies and kinship relations to
govern how they live, which is interwoven into the traditional management of the
Warddeken territory. Fire management plays a significant cultural and economic
role. The Warddeken Indigenous Protected Area is managed by its traditional
owners with the support of Warddeken Land Management Limited, a not-for-profit
company founded in 2007. Its Board of Directors is comprised of representatives of
the 36 clans and is responsible for the governance, strategic direction, and the
operations of the ranger program. It does not speak for the traditional owners nor
does it make decisions for them, but rather it manages the land according to their
guidance. It employs up to 130 Indigenous rangers a year on a casual basis. Rangers
work on fire management and carbon abatement, weed and feral animal control,
rock art conservation, education, and cultural heritage management. Passing on
traditional ecological knowledge to younger generations is a key role as rangers act
as role models in their communities. Having an Indigenous Protected Area means
the Aboriginal landowners develop their own partnerships and determine their
own priorities and outcomes, and it means they remain the primary managers of
their country.
S E E A N N E X F O R M O R E I N F O R M AT I O N
The Udege community in sub-arctic Russia has resisted illegal and commercial logging and overfishing on their lands. They negotiated with the Russian
government to create and co-manage the Bikin National Park, ensuring both
the protection of the lands as well as the opportunity to legally apply their
traditional management of the lands based on Udege traditional knowledge
and customary law.
Leadership Models
The most common leadership model among the Wayfinders is through community elections through a community-based organization, which is then
often represented in an institution comprised of the entire Indigenous peoples
(much like, but not exactly like the Mayangna, Wampis, Achuar, Blackfeet,
Sámi, and Udege). For example, the Achuar leadership is elected by Achuar
communities, with leadership taking turns between the representatives of the
two main watersheds, the Pastaza and the Morona. Decisions are made
through traditional Wayusa meetings that include the Indigenous communities and associations, then later through the Achuar Congress which necessarily includes women, men, elders, youth, and invited guests.
However, in some of the Wayfinders’ governance models, leadership is
passed down from generation to generation through hereditary bonds, such
as with the Gabbra and the Heiltsuk. Among the Gabbra, leadership is
passed on through a pilgrimage on sacred migration routes. In Dayak Iban
Sungai Utik, some leadership is held by a respected elder before being
passed on to another elder; while other leaders are elected and serve for a
set time. Among others, leadership is held by groups of elders or other
respected Indigenous leaders, who serve on a board of directors overseeing
implementation by an institution; such as with Warddeken and the Native
American Land Conservancy.
GOVERNANCE REPORT
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APRIL 2022
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