Managing Country Together

Aboriginal people have cared for and sustainably managed Victoria’s cultural landscapes for tens of thousands of years. Traditional Owners have both a cultural obligation and a legal right to be custodians of their traditional land and waters, and protect the unique natural and cultural values that they contain.

As manager of over 4 million hectares of Victoria’s parks and reserves, Parks Victoria is proud to have the opportunity to work with Traditional Owners to care for this special Country.

Managing Country Together is how we do this. It is our commitment to strong, meaningful partnerships with Traditional Owners. It is about understanding and respecting Traditional Owner rights and values, taking responsibility for protecting Aboriginal cultural heritage on the parks estate and offering the best support we can to Aboriginal people working in the park management sector.

Through Managing Country Together, we are playing our part to support Aboriginal self-determination. Learn more about the Victorian Government’s commitment to self-determination and improving outcomes for Aboriginal people.

Yorta Yorta Ranger Team Leader Ralph blows on some kindling to create fire using a traditional method.

Working in partnership to heal Country

Learn about Managing Country Together from some of Parks Victoria's Joint Management Rangers and discover how we work in partnership with Traditional Owners to care for and heal Country.

Meet the Djaara Ranger Team

Hear from our Djaara Ranger Team and learn about the daily life of a ranger and how we Manage Country Together.

Celebrating NAIDOC Week: 2-9 July 2023

This year’s NAIDOC theme is 'For Our Elders.

NAIDOC Week is an opportunity for all Australians to come together to celebrate the rich history, diverse cultures and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the oldest continuous living cultures on earth. Our commitment and long-term vision for park management is to work effectively in partnership with Traditional Owners to heal Country and care for healthy cultural landscapes and cultural heritage.

Working in partnership to heal Gunaikurnai Country

Preserving the past is important to better manage our cultural landscapes. Patrick Mullett is a proud Gunaikurnai man working on Country to manage and protect Aboriginal cultural heritage and heal Country.

Ponnun Pulgi - Resting Places - Healing Country Together

The cultural landscapes in the northwest of Victoria are ancient, fragile, and rich in Aboriginal values. These values include vast burial grounds that are succumbing to the impacts of human activity and, imported pest species like rabbits, pigs, and, cattle have caused soil disturbance and exposed Ancestral Remains to harm.

Healing Country along the Murray River

Damien Jackson is a Cultural Heritage Protection Specialist. Join Damien and the team as they share insights into the work they are doing to restore and protect Ancestral remains in the Murray-Sunset National Park.

Working in partnership to heal Dja Dja Wurrung Country

Healthy Country, Healthy Mob. The Dja Dja Wurrung Cultural Heritage Team heal Country through educating colleagues and visitors about their Joint Management and traditional practices. Joint Management gives the Djaara people the rights to practice their culture on their Country.

Meet our rangers - Bradd

Bradd is the Ranger Team Leader in Robinvale on the banks of the Murray River. He works with a great team to keep the parks alongside the river open for the local community and visitors a like. He is also a bushfire investigator and is called in to determine the source of bushfires.

Cultural heritage protection specialist Damien in Murray - Sunset National Park

Meet our rangers - Damien

Damien is a proud Wiradjuri man who cares deeply for the lands upon which he works. Based in North West Victoria, but with a statewide remit, Damien is an expert in the identification and protection of aboriginal cultural heritage and a mentor to Parks Victoria staff across the state.

A reflection on the water's surface of river red gums in Barmah National Park

Managing Country Together Framework

Parks Victoria’s Managing Country Together Framework is our blueprint that guides how we work in partnership with Traditional Owners to protect Victoria’s cultural landscapes. It outlines our principles and commitment to recognising and supporting Traditional Owner rights and interests.

Experience Aboriginal culture in parks

Victoria’s parks provide a range of guided and non-guided experiences that provide unique insights into Aboriginal cultural values and stories.

Protecting Aboriginal Cultural Heritage

As part of the oldest living culture in the world, Aboriginal people have lived throughout Victoria for tens of thousands of years. The landscape holds the memory of these past societies and the story of contemporary Aboriginal peoples through tangible and intangible heritage.

Representatives from the Gunaikurnai Land and Water Aboriginal Corporation sit with Parks Victoria Rangers at Buchan Caves Reserve.

Partnerships with Traditional Owners

Strong, respectful and empowering partnerships is at the core of how we work with Traditional Owners. Our approach to partnerships recognises the inherent human rights of Aboriginal people.

Aboriginal Employment and Wellbeing

Caring for Country is the fabric of Aboriginal social, spiritual, economic and overall health and wellbeing. Parks Victoria is committed to being a culturally safe workplace, and supporting Aboriginal people to work in the park management sector.

Connection to Country: Ranger Ebonee

Follow Ranger Ebonee, a proud Wadawurrung woman, through Wurdi Youang/You Yangs Regional Park as she describes the importance of connecting to and caring for Country.

Connection to Country: Ranger Trent

Follow Ranger Trent, a proud Dja Dja Wurrung and Yorta Yorta man, through Leanganook/Mt Alexander Regional Park as he describes the importance of connecting to and caring for Country.