This website contains images of people who have passed away.

Goal 18: Aboriginal land, water and cultural rights are realised

On this page

Overview

Measures under Goal 18 have varied in performance

Small increases in the amount of land under native title and settlement agreements, cultural burns conducted by Traditional Owner groups, and progress towards the start of formal Treaty negotiations all point towards a more self-determined management of Country by Traditional Owners.

At the same time there are less new formal partnerships on cultural heritage, land and water management. Overall, there has been limited progress toward realisation of Goal 18 in 2023-24.

Goal 18 directly aligns with the following Closing the Gap Outcome and Targets

Outcome 15: People maintain a distinctive cultural, spiritual, physical and economic relationship with their land and waters.

  • Target 15a: By 2030, a 15 per cent increase in Australia’s land mass subject to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people’s legal rights or interests.
  • Target 15b: By 2030, a 15 per cent increase in areas covered by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people’s legal rights or interests in the sea.

Closing the Gap - How Victoria is tracking nationally

Outcome 15a: In 2024, 4,314,744 square kilometres of the land mass of Australia were subject to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people’s rights or interests. Nationally, based on progress from the baseline, the land mass target shows good improvement. In Victoria, there has been an increase from 16,068 square kilometres in 2023 to 16,351 square kilometres in 2024 based on data from the National Native Title Tribunal.

Outcome 15b: In 2024, 113,517 square kilometres of the sea country of Australia were subject to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people’s rights or interests. Nationally, based on progress from the baseline, the sea country target shows improvement and is on track to be met. In Victoria, there has been an increase from 293 square kilometres in 2023 to 295 square kilometres in 2024 based on data from the National Native Title Tribunal.

Data Note

The latest year of available data varies across the Report due to the inconsistent frequency of collection of survey data and lags in processing administrative data. Data in this Report is the most up to date available for publishing.

No new data was available at the time of reporting for:

  • Measure 18.1.4 Number of Whole of Country Plans published. The Federation of Victorian Traditional Owners Corporations (FVTOC) does not hold this data.

Historical data for the measure is available on the First Peoples – State Relations website

Analysis of the measure

18.1 Increase the recognition and enjoyment of Aboriginal land, water and cultural heritage rights

Measure 18.1.1 Area of Crown land with native title determinations and/or Recognition and Settlement Agreements

As of 30 June 2024, there are four Recognition and Settlement Agreements (RSA) under the Traditional Owner Settlement Act 2010 (TOS Act) in existence. No new RSAs commenced in 2023-24. The total area of Victoria covered by the RSAs is approximately 96,210 km2, of which 34,920 km2 is Crown land and waters.

As of 30 June 2024, the Federal Court has recognised under the Native Title Act 1993 (Commonwealth) that native title exists over 16,629 km2 of Crown land and waters. This includes the Federal Court’s second determination of the Eastern Maar People’s native title claim (on 21 March 2024) which added 289.16 km2 to the area where native title exists. This determination recognises and acknowledges the deep and ongoing connection of the Eastern Maar people to their Country.

This is the second year in a row where the area of native title in Victoria has grown. This is after a decade of no growth in native title (since 2012-13).

Traditional Owner and Aboriginal Community Engagement Framework

Self-determination Enabler 4. Transfer power and resources to communities

In October 2024, the Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action’s (DEECA) First Peoples’ Self-Determination Division launched the second edition of the Traditional Owner (TO) and Aboriginal Community Engagement Framework.

The updated Framework highlights the importance of listening to and acting in the best interests of TOs and Aboriginal Communities by embedding self-determination and TO rights and interests in the work that we do. It provides clear steps, advice, and refreshed guidance for all DEECA staff to engage with TOs (with and without formal recognition) and Aboriginal Communities across Victoria.

The following updates have been incorporated:

• Alignment with current context – what’s happening in the broader landscape, the release of Pupangarli Marnmarnepu, the emergence of Treaty and the Yoorrook Justice Commission.

• A new 5-step process to ensure DEECA is coordinated and culturally competent when planning for and engaging with TOs and Aboriginal Communities. These 5 steps are: prepare, contextualise, plan, engage and evaluate.

• Revised engagement principles, including two new principles (‘engage early’ and ‘resource TOs to participate in DEECA businesses’), providing 10 principles in total.

• A set of revised ‘best practice considerations’.

• The addition of the Wamba Wemba Aboriginal Corporation as the most recent appointed Registered Aboriginal Party.

• Additional supporting materials such as a Traditional Owner Engagement Plan Template and Traditional Owner Corporation profiles, frequently asked questions, and case studies.

• Additional advice on engagement with formally and non-formally recognised TO groups.

Measure 18.1.2 Work of the State in advancing the Treaty process

Statewide Treaty negotiations with the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria commenced in November 2024, marked by a ceremony at Darebin Parklands.

The first Statewide Treaty will be negotiated between the State of Victoria and the democratically elected body representing First Peoples, the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria, in line with Treaty legislation and the Treaty Negotiation Framework.

The Victorian Government has worked with First Peoples for the past eight years to lay the foundations for Treaty negotiations, including passing two acts of Parliament and delivering on policies across every level of government.

Treaty is about making a better and fairer state for every Victorian and coming up with practical solutions on key issues for First Peoples – from keeping culture strong to improving the way services are delivered.

Measure 18.1.3 Number of Registered Aboriginal Parties (RAPs) that have entered into an Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Land Management Agreement

In 2024, no new notices of intention (NOI) or Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Land Management Agreements (ACHLMA) were entered into by the state with a Registered Aboriginal Party. In total there are 9 NOI and 4 ACHLMA since 2017.

ACHLMAs are a mutually agreed framework between government and First Peoples’ organisations. The agreements detail how Aboriginal cultural heritage will be protected and managed during land management activities within a specified Agreement Area, over a specified period.

Measure 18.1.5 Number of Joint Management Plans and area of land covered

In 2024, no new Victorian land was covered by a Joint Management Plan (JMP). There has not been an increase in JMPs since 2022. There are currently three JMPs with three Traditional Owner groups in Victoria, covering a total of 1,225.75 square kilometres and spanning 17 parks and reserves.

The Gunaikurnai people jointly manage 10 parks and reserves (approx. 470.7 km2) through the Gippsland region JMP.

The Dja Dja Wurrung people jointly manage 6 parks and reserves (approx. 470 km2) through the Central Victoria JMP.

Lastly, the Yorta Yorta people jointly manage the Barmah National Park 1 (approx 285.1 km2).

Wadawurrung Urban Design Guidelines

With significant development occurring across Wadawurrung Country, Regional Development Victoria facilitated funding for Wadawurrung Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation (WTOAC) to prepare the Wadawurrung Urban Design Guidelines (WUDG). The WUDG supports WTOAC to set the terms of engagement and facilitate deeper partnerships with government, developers and design professionals to Koling Wada Nyaal (walk together) with Traditional Owners.

The WUDG supports greater cultural authority and economic development initiatives for WTOAC and recognises their rights to exercise their cultural obligation to care for Country in an urban context. The WUDG will provide guidance to ensure Wadawurrung culture and values are recognised and respected in the built environment and will guide how stakeholders work and interact with WTOAC in genuine partnerships to produce mutual benefit.

Wurrek-al ‘Talking with Purpose’ First Peoples Engagement Framework

Self-determination Enabler 3. Address racism and promote cultural safety

The Wurrek-al ‘Talking with Purpose’ First Peoples Engagement Framework was launched in January 2024. Wurrek-al provides a coordinated whole-of-portfolio framework to guide engagement with First Peoples. Development of Wurrek-al was a commitment under the Transport Portfolio Aboriginal Self-Determination Plan 2020-2023 (Action 5) (the Portfolio).

Wurrek-al aims to streamline and better coordinate engagement across the Portfolio whilst enabling Victorian Traditional Owners and First Peoples Community to have greater decision-making in activities on their Country. It equips staff with the necessary skills and tools to engage effectively and meaningfully with Traditional Owners and the First Peoples Community. To guide staff across the Portfolio, it includes:

  • eight fundamental principles of engagement
  • the Portfolio’s engagement process
  • best practice engagement case studies from across the Portfolio.

Implementation of Wurrek-al is facilitated via an online process map tool, accessed via the Department of Transport and Planning’s (DTP) intranet. This tool allows project teams to track a project’s progress through the engagement process. It also provides an automated data set that can be monitored centrally to track the level of engagement across the Portfolio, where engagement is focused and progress of individual projects.

Since its launch, 161 Wurrek-al engagements have been reported across DTP and the Portfolio, with the majority on Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung, Bunurong and Wadawurrung Country. Engagements primarily relate to capital project delivery, precincts and planning projects and aim to ensure compliance with Traditional Owner cultural heritage and other rights, and to incorporate recognition, respect and celebration of First Peoples’ culture and history, during project delivery.

The First Peoples Self Determination and Reform Division oversees implementation of Wurrek-al, including developing training materials and delivering masterclasses for Portfolio staff, providing strategic advice to project teams on best practice engagement, facilitating communication with Registered Aboriginal Parties and First Peoples organisations, monitoring Portfolio-wide engagement, reporting, evaluation and continuous improvement.

Measure 18.1.6 Number of cultural burns conducted

In 2023-24, Traditional Owners conducted 29 cultural burns with the support of Victorian Government agencies. This is an increase of 9 since 2022-23 and 19 since 2018-19. Cultural burning is an integral part of enabling Traditional Owners to heal Country and fulfil their rights and obligations to care for Country. As living knowledge, it has an emphasis on inter-generational learning, including healing and maintaining connection to Country. Cultural burning measures may include different measures to mainstream land management. For example, being on Country, observing Elders and learning cultural burning practice on Country, or burning at a scale or rate that enables small animals to move beyond danger or to heal the ecosystem over time. For Traditional Owners removing policy and operational barriers to reinstate cultural burning remains a priority. DEECA continues to build stronger partnerships with Traditional Owners, assisting many with the planning, mapping and approvals currently required to deliver cultural burns on public land.

Measure 18.1.7 Number of formal partnership agreements for planning and management between Aboriginal communities and key water and catchment agencies

First Peoples and key water & catchment agencies were in 125 active and ongoing formal partnership agreements in 2023-24. This is lower than the previous three years. 69.1 per cent of all agreements are active and ongoing with 51.4 per cent active in 2023-24. This decrease is partly caused by the active efforts of some water corporations to consolidate partnership agreements with Aboriginal communities to streamline program funding arrangements and reduce administrative burden. It is important that key water and catchment agencies are in partnership with Traditional Owners over the use of water. Self-determination of water flows are an important tool for caring for Country.

In June 2024, Joint Council on Closing the Gap agreed to develop state and territory specific approaches to giving back control over inland waters to Traditional Owners. In Victoria this means DEECA is working in partnership with Ngaweeyan Maar-oo, the Federation of Victoria Traditional Owner Corporations, and the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria to develop a Victoria specific Inland Waters target.

Partnership Agreement with the Taungurung Land and Waters Aboriginal Corporation

Self-determination Enabler 4. Transfer power and resources to communities

In June 2024, the Department of Transport and Planning (DTP) signed a Partnership Agreement with the Taungurung Land and Waters Aboriginal Corporation (TLaWC) on Taungurung Country. The Partnership Agreement provides the foundation for an enduring relationship which moves beyond merely complying with legal obligations, to pursuing mutually beneficial outcomes. Key elements of the agreement include:

  • Delivery of requirements under the Taungurung Recognition and Settlement Agreement
  • Identification of shared goals and aspirations
  • Facilitating the Transport and Planning Portfolio’s support for initiatives that can enable revitalisation and celebration of Taungurung culture on Taungurung Country
  • Identifying procurement opportunities for TLaWC-nominated suppliers, including the development of a procurement strategy to engage TLaWC to undertake natural resource management.

To oversee implementation of the agreement, the DTP and TLaWC have established an Engagement Team which met for the first time in October 2024 on Taungurung Country.

DTP has also extended invitations to additional Registered Aboriginal Parties to begin partnership agreement discussions. Initial preparations to commence partnership agreement discussions have begun with Bunurong Land Council Aboriginal Corporation, with DTP providing funding in March 2024 to support its participation. The next tranche of partnership agreements will focus on Traditional Owner groups with a Recognition and Settlement Agreement, either in place or under negotiation, or with high level cultural heritage work on their Country. This includes Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung Cultural Heritage Aboriginal Corporation, Eastern Maar Aboriginal Corporation, Dja Dja Wurrung Clans Aboriginal Corporation, Gunaikurnai Land and Waters Aboriginal Corporation and Barengi Gadjin Land Council.

Partnership agreements will seek to maximise Traditional Owner outcomes, including under Recognition and Settlement Agreements, by:

  • early, open engagement and greater transparency about Portfolio projects and activities on Country, including activities under Land Use Activity Agreements or under Cultural Heritage Management Plans
  • proactively identify opportunities to procure natural resource management services, to deliver on minimum spend requirements
  • exploring other commercial opportunities beyond natural resource management.

Returning water to Wadawurrung Country: a learning-by-doing watering trial for cultural outcomes in the Moorabool catchment

In February and March 2024, the Wadawurrung Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation (WTOAC) led a project delivering water to the Moorabool Yaluk (Moorabool River) and Durdidwarrah Wetland from Lal Lal and Bostock reservoirs and the Upper Stony Creek reservoirs. The water (300 ML in total) was made available by Central Highlands Water and Barwon Water, and WTOAC worked collaboratively with many partner organisations.

The project aimed to provide WTOAC with hands-on learning in water management and delivery, focusing on cultural outcomes by returning water to Country. Insights from the watering trial will inform the transfer of permanent water rights for self-determined use, as outlined in the State Government's Central and Gippsland Region Sustainable Water Strategy.

Wadawurrung’s Country Plan, Paleert Tjaara Dja – Let’s make Country good together 2020-2030, aims to ensure that by 2030, the Barre Warre Yulluk waterways have clean, drinkable water flowing without barriers.

Claire, a Wadawurrung woman and Wadawurrung Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation Water Project Officer, said, “I believe our Ancestors would be proud of what we’ve accomplished. We continue their legacy by nurturing our waterways, just as they did.”

WTOAC acknowledges the work of the Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action, Corangamite Catchment Management Authority, Parks Victoria, Southern Rural Water, the Victorian Environmental Water Holder, Arthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research, Clear Advice and Strategy and Environmental Justice Australia, who supported WTOAC releasing water on Country.

Sea Country Partnership and Saltwater Council

Self-determination Enabler 4. Transfer power and resources to communities

The Sea Country Partnership was established in 2021 as the foundation on which to develop the Marine and Coastal Strategy. The Sea Country Partnership comprises six Registered Aboriginal Parties (RAPs) with marine and coastal country:

  • Bunurong Land Council Aboriginal Corporation (BLCAC)
  • Eastern Maar Aboriginal Corporation (EMAC)
  • Gunditj Mirring Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation (GMTOAC)
  • Gunaikurnai Land and Waters Aboriginal Corporation (GLaWAC)
  • WTOAC
  • Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung Cultural Heritage Aboriginal Corporation (WWWCHAC).

The Sea Country Partnership meet monthly to discuss projects funded through Sea Country Grants and policy reforms that affect the groups. Collectively, the Partnership members have agreed to implement ten Activities of the Marine and Coastal Strategy and partner in the delivery of a further 34 activities with other land managers like Catchment Management Authorities (CMAs) and Local Governments.

The Sea Country grants program provides resources and support to enable Traditional Owners to self-determine their priority projects to implement their obligations under the Marine and Coastal Strategy, and how their rights and obligations are embedded into planning and management of the marine and coastal environment. In 2024, the grants have funded the following activities:

  • Developing sea ranger programs (Gunditj Mirring Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation with support from GLaWAC to understand coastal values)
  • Developing a biocultural land strategy (Eastern Maar Aboriginal Corporation)
  • Facilitating cultural exchanges and cultural heritage recording (Gunditj Mirring Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation and Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Cultural Heritage Aboriginal Corporation)
  • Undertaking cultural mapping and incorporating marine and coastal knowledge in Country Plans (Wadawurrung Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation, Bunurong Land Council Aboriginal Corporation, Gunditj Mirring Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation, Eastern Maar Aboriginal Corporation, Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung Cultural Heritage Aboriginal Corporation, and Gunaikurnai Land and Waters Aboriginal Corporation).

Also in 2024, five of the six RAP groups agreed to form the Saltwater Council, with Gunditj Mirring holding observer status. The Saltwater Council will advise governments and their agencies of marine and coastal issues that concern Aboriginal people. It offers the opportunity for coastal Traditional Owners to:

  • Self-determine their future
  • Create strategic partnerships
  • Identify links and pathways to address capacity issues
  • Work collaboratively together to shape our collective future
  • Be better planned and strategic and less reactionary
  • Participate in decisions that affect Sea Country.

Constituting a Saltwater Council will enable RAP Groups to facilitate a greater understanding by governments of the funding and projects required to address the issues deemed important to protect sea country and all its biocultural values, and to fulfil their obligations to country while implementing the Marine and Coastal Strategy.

Culture and Country

The richness and diversity of Aboriginal history and culture in Victoria and the resilience and strength of Aboriginal communities and peoples, is something for all Victorians to celebrate.

Updated

Back to top