Navigating the Land &
Traditional Owners
Partnership with Traditional Owners and Native Title holders is critical for industry, but navigating this space can pose challenges. What’s the best way to proceed?
Navigating the Land &
Engaging with Traditional Owners
Recognising and connecting with Traditional Owners of the land in which you operate is a critical element of showing respect to First Nations people as an organisation in Australia. Only Traditional Owners are able to welcome visitors to Country, as part of the protocols that have been maintained by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures for thousands of years.
As such, organisations are encouraged to include a Welcome to Country by a Traditional Owner for any formal event or activity to demonstrate their awareness and respect of the Culture of whose land they are using. In lieu of this, an Acknowledgement of Country can be delivered by anyone, while still recognising the significance of the connection to Country for First Nations people. By connecting with Traditional Owners in this way, organisations can then establish a relationship with communities and develop longer term partnerships.
However, identifying the Traditional Owners of a particular part of Australia is not always straightforward. Research into the appropriate Traditional Owners can be ongoing and there can be multiple layers of authority including Native Title representative bodies, land councils and family governance.[i] Additionally, there can be differences between the name of the people, family, or clan who are identified as the Traditional Owners, their language groups and their nation group.
As an organisation, knowing which groups you can reach out to and what they represent is a good starting point.
Resources For Identifying Traditional Owners
- Local government/councils – Websites will often provide resources and acknowledgement of Traditional Owners and some have devised interactive maps for cultural understanding.
- State and territory governments or representative bodies – Websites will provide resources for identifying Traditional Owners.
- Land councils (see below)
- Maps from the National Native Title Tribunal – These feature claims and determinations for Native Title by state and region.
- Maps from Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS) – These are collated from research into the various language or nation groups around Australia, although the maps are indicative only.
| Read more | AIATSIS – Engaging with traditional owners
Tourism Australia – Welcome to and Acknowledgement of Country |
Tourism operators should seek to increase government involvement and investment in order to meet the growing demand from international and domestic visitors.
The Native Title Act (NTA) and its implications
What is Native Title?
The Native Title Act 1993 is the primary law recognising the rights and interests of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in land and waters according to their traditional laws and customs.
It was created following the Mabo v Queensland (No 2) 1992 landmark judgement, which acknowledged the pre-existing Native Title rights that were held by Indigenous people. The NTA now establishes a process and system for recognising these rights and connection to country in Australian law.
Alternatively, the Aboriginal Land Rights Act 1976 grants title to Traditional Owners of country in the Northern Territory. The Act granted freehold land title to Traditional Owners of Aboriginal land, the strongest land rights in Australian law.
How does it work?
Native Title can be claimed on lands not privately held such as vacant Crown land, parks and public reserves, beaches, land held by government agencies, land held for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, and pastoral leases.
To claim Native Title, people must prove they have connection to Country. Title holders then need to establish a corporation, known as a prescribed body corporate or PBC, to govern decision making processes for the title holders. Land councils help to manage PBCs and also help to govern decision making processes. PBCs and Land Councils play an important role in bridging the gap between the Traditional Owners, other groups with an interest in the land, and Australian law-making bodies.
| Read more | Prescribed Body Corporate website – Information for Native Title groups and corporations
Central Land Council – Introduction to native title and prescribed body corporates |
Holding Native Title gives Traditional Owners the collection of rights to perform certain activities, including the right to:
- Maintain and protect sites
- Use the land for hunting or ceremony
- Camp and live on the land
- Share in money from any development on the land
- Have a say in the management or development of the land
Tourism operators should seek to understand what activities they have permission to perform on land under Native Title. Some activities will entail an agreement with the Prescribed Body Corporate, with the permission of all the affected Native Title Owners.
Getting to this agreement will involve consultation and negotiation with multiple parties, plus ongoing stakeholder engagement, making cultural competency vital. Any permissions obtained should be updated with respect to the interests of the Traditional Owners and maintaining connection.
Land Councils
Land Councils are recognised representative bodies of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander affairs at a regional, state or territory level, representing Traditional Owners with all aspects of their Native Title claims, including management of title holding corporations (PBCs), and more generally work to preserve and protect the Culture and heritage of their peoples. Land councils can cover large areas and represent multiple First Nations communities.
Land Councils have the ability to connect organisations with Traditional Owners of the land in which they operate, this can be used to arrange a Welcome to Country or to do an Acknowledgement of Country, as well as to start the process of establishing a relationship with Traditional Owners.
As mentioned in state initiatives, the structure of governance and powers of these organisations will vary by state, depending on their local agreements and state legislation. Some will have mandates that reach further into the realm of community services and advocacy. However, in general, they have legal power to help First Nations people negotiate and set rules with parties over the use of their lands.
The following Land Councils and representative bodies are connected to the majority of Traditional Owners in each state:
State / Territory
Australian Capital Territory
Organisation
United Ngunnawal Elders Council (ACT and Queanbeyan)
Roles
- A significant Aboriginal body representing Traditional Owners
- Advisor to ACT government in relation to heritage and connection to land matters
State / Territory
New South Wales
Organisation
NSW Aboriginal Land Council
Roles
- Peak representative body in Aboriginal Affairs
- Statutory corporation under the NSW Aboriginal Land Rights Act 1983 to provide for the development of land rights in conjunction with the 120 Local Aboriginal Land Councils in NSW
State / Territory
New South Wales
Organisation
Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council (Sydney)
Roles
- One of the LALCs of NSW – incorporated body constituted under the NSW Aboriginal Land Rights Act
State / Territory
Victoria
Organisation
Aboriginal Heritage Council – Registered Aboriginal Parties
Roles
- Statutory body established under the Aboriginal Heritage Act 2006
- Comprises of 11 Registered Aboriginal Parties – representative corporations – that cover about 75% of Victoria
State / Territory
Victoria
Organisation
Barengi Gadjin Land Council (Western Victoria)
Roles
- Land Council representing Wotjobaluk peoples
- Prescribed Body Corporate
- Registered Aboriginal Party
State / Territory
Queensland
Organisation
North Queensland Aboriginal Land Council
Roles
- Native Title representative body for Aboriginal peoples and PBCs in the North Queensland region
State / Territory
Queensland
Organisation
Cape York Land Council
Roles
- Native Title representative body for the Cape York Region
State / Territory
South Australia
Organisation
Anangu Pitjantjatjara Land Council (Far Northwest South Australia)
Roles
- Incorporated by the South Australia Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Land Rights Act 1981
- Oversees the activities of various constituent groups on the Lands
State / Territory
Tasmania
Organisation
Tasmanian Aboriginal Land Council
Roles
- Statutory body established under Tasmania Aboriginal Lands Act 1995 to own and manage land on behalf of First Nation people in Tasmania
- Operating outside Native Title Act due to severity of historical dispossession preventing continuous links of any group to country
State / Territory
Tasmania
Organisation
Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre Inc
Roles
- Represents political and community development aspirations of the Tasmanian Aboriginal community
State / Territory
Northern Territory
Organisation
Central Land Council (Southern mainland Northern Territory)
Roles
- Independent statutory authorities established under the Northern Territory Aboriginal Land Rights Act 1976
- Responsible for assisting Aboriginal peoples in their respective regions to acquire and manage their traditional lands and seas
State / Territory
Northern Territory
Organisation
Northern Land Council (Top End, northern mainland Northern Territory)
Roles
- Independent statutory authorities established under the Northern Territory Aboriginal Land Rights Act 1976
- Responsible for assisting Aboriginal peoples in their respective regions to acquire and manage their traditional lands and seas
State / Territory
Northern Territory
Organisation
Tiwi Land Council (Bathurst and Melville Islands north of Darwin)
Roles
- Independent statutory authorities established under the Northern Territory Aboriginal Land Rights Act 1976
- Responsible for assisting Aboriginal peoples in their respective regions to acquire and manage their traditional lands and seas
State / Territory
Northern Territory
Organisation
Anindilyakawa Land Council (Groote Eylandt in the Gulf of Carpentaria)
Roles
- Independent statutory authorities established under the Northern Territory Aboriginal Land Rights Act 1976
- Responsible for assisting Aboriginal peoples in their respective regions to acquire and manage their traditional lands and seas
State / Territory
Western Australia
Organisation
South-West Aboriginal Land and Sea Council
Roles
- Native Title representative bodies for the Traditional Owners of their respective regions
State / Territory
Western Australia
Organisation
Yamatji Marlpa Land and Sea Council (Murchison, Gascoyne and Pilbara Regions)
Roles
- Native Title representative bodies for the Traditional Owners of their respective regions
State / Territory
Western Australia
Organisation
Kimberley Land Council
Roles
- Native Title representative bodies for the Traditional Owners of their respective regions