Project Leader: Dr Richard Davis, (now at the School of Social and Cultural Studies, University of Western Australia)

Project 4.2.2

Summary  | Outputs | More information |

Summary

This project examined the social impact of the transfer of grazing rights to Aboriginal people in the Kimberley over the last three decades-an ongoing process with significant implications for the tropical savannas. This project is now complete.

Taking the theme of savanna as society, this project explored four interconnected social and cultural aspects of Aboriginal pastoralism. Firstly, it inquired into social organisational factors affecting decision making on stations. It sought to understand men and women's participation in pastoralism, focusing on the recruitment of young men to the industry. Thirdly, it explored the associations and uses of land that are unique to Aboriginal pastoralists. Fourthly, it located Aboriginal pastoralism within a political ecology of state governance and a commodity economy.

From this and other studies on pastoralism elsewhere in the world, a picture was developed of Aboriginal pastoralism as it intersects with indigenous sociality and culture, state systems of governance and commodity market systems. This project was relevant for planning future strategies of Aboriginal cattle and land management.

Outputs

• The project developed alternative cattle management strategies to those used at present, to better integrate cattle management with Aboriginal social objectives.
• It extended research to Aboriginal organisations.
• It established international linkages with organisations representing and delivering services to indigenous pastoralists in rangeland regions.
• It published conference proceedings and two further publications, one describing social organisational features of station families, and the other a literature survey comparing Aboriginal pastoralism with other forms of pastoralism practised elsewhere around the world.