And That’s a Wrap for the RALF

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For the past five years, our Regional Agriculture Landcare Facilitators have been traveling across our 7.5-million-hectare region, working with groups and individuals to support the future of sustainable agriculture in the Northern Agriculture Region.

In case you have forgotten, here’s a little memory jogger for you; Regional Agriculture Landcare Facilitators, or RALFs as we like to call them, were funded and supported by the Department of Agriculture Fisheries and Forestry as part of the Regional Land Partnerships (RLP) program over five years (2018-19 to 2022-23). RALFs work to build the future of sustainable agriculture in Australia. There have been over 65 RALFs based across Australia undertaking a unique role in the community, assisting stakeholders and being the key contacts for landcarers to learn about sustainable agriculture.

RALFs aimed to support farmers, industry, and community groups (including Landcare Groups) to adopt new and innovative sustainable agriculture practices. Establishing and building partnerships with our local growers, landcare, and farming groups has been a central part of the role for the last five years.

RALF services include:

    • Engaging and informing farming communities and agricultural industries within the NAR about emerging ideas, innovative practices, and relevant new government policies and programs to help improve agriculture’s sustainability, productivity, and profitability.
    • Facilitating partnerships to best deliver agriculture outcomes, such as connecting industry, grower, and community groups so that they can work together to address common issues.
    • Assisting farming communities and agriculture industry groups to develop new projects and seek new funding opportunities.
    • Supporting the delivery of the NACC NRM National Landcare Program Sustainable Agriculture projects, including Supporting Smarter Farms and Growing Great Ground.
    • Reporting to the department annually on the delivery of RALF services.
    • Participating in a ‘Communities of Practice’ to better understand complex issues, improve networks, and help develop solutions for national priorities.
    • Informing the department about emerging issues and events within the NAR.

Collectively, RALFs contributed to the RLP program’s agricultural outcomes:

    • By 2023, there is an increase in the awareness and adoption of land management practices that improve and protect the condition of soil, biodiversity and vegetation
    • By 2023, there is an increase in the capacity of agriculture systems to adapt to significant changes in climate and market demands for information on provenance and sustainable production.

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So to celebrate the finalization of the RALF program, here is a quick wrap-up from the past five years!

We have supported more than 15 community groups, promoted over 60 funding opportunities to our community and distributed over 80 articles. We have attended over 100 regional events and supported over 25 events. We have assisted more than 20 stakeholders with project planning, funding applications and grant writing through individual assistance, letters of support and community grant writing workshops. More than 60 events and projects happening in the NAR were promoted. And above all, we have made endless friendships, built an incredible network and liaised with some of the most wonderful people across our beautiful region.

So what’s next?

The current Regional Agriculture Landcare Facilitator (RALF) program officially ended on 30 June 2023, with the program set to be replaced, at a broad level, by the new SAF (Sustainable Agriculture Facilitator) program. This acknowledges and builds on the success of the NHT-funded regional agriculture facilitators over many years.

Keep an eye out for more information on the next round of funding and the progress of the SAF. We will continue to celebrate and share the fantastic things happening across the Northern Agricultural Region.

NACC NRM takes this opportunity to thank all of our stakeholders, project partners, and community members for their ongoing support during the past five years. And a special mention to NACC NRM’s superstar RALFs Lizzie King, Shannah Kanny, and Annabelle Garratt who each played pivotal roles in providing this service!

The RALF Program is supported by NACC NRM through the Australian Government’s Regional Landcare Partnerships initiative of the National Landcare Program.

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In 2020-21 I talked about ‘raising the bar’. In 2021-22 we worked on setting the bar on fire. Over the last 12 months, the team at NACC NRM has not stopped.

The Sustainable Agriculture team has extended the program’s reach through collaborations with grower groups in the regions. Specifically, the Beyond Reasonable Drought project and Grower Group Alliance – South West WA Drought Innovation Hub – Geraldton Node project. The Beyond Reasonable Drought partnership with grower groups supported farmers across the region to improve the environmental sustainability of their agricultural production and drought resilience. The outcomes of this project have been consolidated through our successful Expression of Interest to the South West WA Drought Innovation Hub, with support from grower groups across the region, to host the Geraldton Node of the Hub. The program continues to focus on working with agricultural networks to share technical expertise and provide opportunities that will improve land management practices in agriculture across the region.

The conservation outcomes of ranger teams have expanded through work on several land tenures. Maintaining Heritage sites such as Willi Gulli, Racecourse Paddock and Buller River has long been a priority. During 2021-22, the teams have increasingly focused on threatened species and ecosystems.

To this end, Western Mulga rangers have improved management across 19,000 ha for the conservation of Malleefowl through firebreak and access management. They completed the maintenance of water holes and supported the monitoring of over 90 Malleefowl mounds.

Similarly, the Kwelena Mambakort Aboriginal Corporate ranger team have contributed positively to Carnaby’s Black Cockatoo populations by installing artificial hollows and habitat restoration.

All ranger teams have collected native seed, propagated native plants for restoration, and planted native vegetation in key locations across the NAR. Seed collection provides valuable industry experience and has facilitated the planting of over 100,000 seedlings during the year.   

In September 2021, the NACC NRM team delivered the WA Threatened Species Forum, held in tandem with the National Malleefowl Forum. Given the impact of COVID and the timing of this event, having more than 100 delegates from all over Australia was a significant achievement. The two Forums brought together 12 events over five days and featured 14 local artists, 25 businesses and 36 youth participants.

Following the successful relaunch of our updated NARvis, NACC NRM was invited to help lead a significant piece of strategic planning work for the region with Mid West Development Commission and the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development. With funding from the Australian Government’s Future Drought Fund, the consortia delivered a Regional Drought Resilience Plan covering the shires of Northampton and Chapman Valley and the City of Greater Geraldton, along with significant technical analysis of drought vulnerability for the South West land division. The development of this plan also included extensive community consultation to ensure that local knowledge and technical advice guided the development of priorities for action.

This planning work links to existing NACC NRM on-ground projects, including Beyond Reasonable Drought and the Chapman Catchment Collaborative regeneration project.

It was a busy year for events with face-to-face events becoming commonplace again. During 2021-22 we hosted events in Gingin, Moora, Dalwallinu, Cervantes, Jurien Bay, Walkaway, Nabawa, Perenjori, Kalannie and Morawa. We supported events in Karakin, Thundellara, Perenjori, Paynes Find, Wubin, Cataby, Warradarge, Northampton, Yuna, Dalwallinu and Dandaragan.

We also supported on-ground works throughout the region, including at the following locations Yuna, Dalwallinu, Dandaragan, Merkanooka, Goodlands, Kalannie, Bunjil, Yardarino, Canna, Kondut, Latham, Kadathinni, Nabawa, Red Gully, Sandy Gully, Waddy Forrest, Devils Creek, Perenjori, Bowgada, Ellendale, Wandana, Namban, Hill River, Warradarge, Gillingarra, Regans Ford and Moonyanooka.

Our region is vast – slightly larger than Tasmania, which for comparison, is serviced by three separate NRM organisations. Covering the NAR region and its many environmental threats is challenging. We continue to focus on partnerships and collaboration to address this challenge. We know that by working with our community through passionate delivery of collaborative on-ground projects and education, the community will value and actively protect our region’s natural capital.

This year we have launched a new Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP). The RAP Working Group consulted widely and developed an Innovate RAP which Reconciliation Australia approved in March 2022. The activities to fulfil these commitments are now in full swing.

Sadly, at the end of 2021, we farewelled former NACC NRM CEO Shelley Spriggs, who lost a long battle with cancer. Shelley was an inaugural inductee to the NRM Leadership Honour Roll. I will always be grateful for her guidance and no-nonsense approach, not to mention her passion for life.

While we have said farewell to some, we have welcomed many new faces across all programs, including our Administration team. We have also hosted a school-based trainee from Nagle Catholic College who has been working towards a Certificate II in Conservation and Ecosystem Management. This trial position has been very successful, and we look forward to making this opportunity available again in 2023.

During 2022 we have taken on new projects that align with our organisational and program objectives, and we have successfully completed some great initiatives that support continued conservation and sustainability outcomes. I want to thank the whole team who continue to go above and beyond for the organisation and each other proving their ongoing commitment to our purpose and our values.