Kaanju homelands are rich in plant, animal and mineral resources. Natural resources play a vital role in the traditional and contemporary economy for Kaanju people. We have detailed knowledge of the sustainable use and management of natural resources based on thousands of years of empirical observations passed down to the current generation of Kaanju people. Under Kaanju law and custom there are certain 'owners' of each resource and species, whose role includes maintenance of the resource or species by 'looking after' particular Story Places and totemic sites.
Objectives:
- To facilitate the practice and maintenance of Kaanju methods and systems of natural resource use and management.
- To use and manage natural resources on Kaanju homelands in a sustainable manner.
- To benefit economically from traditional and new resource uses on Kaanju homelands.
The land is a major provider of sustenance for Kaanju people living at Chuulangun. Fish such as bream (puurumi), barramundi (athinyu) and catfish (thampa), reptiles such as long (punkupinta) and short neck freshwater turtle (ulkiichi) and goanna (yita), mammals such as wallaby (piiwu), the eggs of the bush turkey (nyacha,) and a number of berries (ilnti), fruits and yam (thampul) feature in our diet. This 'traditional' diet is supplemented by pig and bullock meat and store bought foods.
Natural resources also play an important role in Kaanju material culture as they have done for thousands of years. Fibres from varieties of native palm and grasses are dried and coloured with dyes derived from the roots of certain plants and used for making baskets and adornments worn by traditional dancers.
A range of native plant species are used in traditional 'bush' medicine. Saps and resins extracted from bark and roots, and oils from leaves, have important medicinal properties and play an important role in Kaanju pharmacopoeia at the local level. We will investigate the pharmacological values of some of these products in a project pending, Kaanju Oils Distillation Trial.
Strategies:Natural Resources Management Plan incorporating: rare and threatened species management; fisheries management; mineral resources management and plant species management.
Develop feasibility plan for sustainable selective harvesting of 'bush tucker' for market.
As with other projects on Kaanju homelands we are seeking collaborative research arrangements with individuals and organisations to help further our objectives in relation to natural resource management issues.
