Authors and acknowledgements | Australia state of the environment 2021

Chief authors

Ian Cresswell

Dr Ian Cresswell has extensive experience working in environment and sustainable development in several different areas, including biodiversity, reserve planning, fisheries, wildlife regulation and protected areas. He has a long history of success in managing large-scale, science-based government programs in natural resource management, with a strong focus on management to balance environmental, economic and social outcomes. He provides high-level advice to government and industry on environmental and sustainability issues. Dr Cresswell has led major research programs in CSIRO in both terrestrial and marine domains, as well as holding senior roles in marine planning, sustainable fisheries and wildlife management, including as the Director of the Australian Biological Resources Study. 

Terri Janke

Dr Terri Janke is a Meriam/Wuthathi woman and an international authority on Indigenous cultural and intellectual property (ICIP), known for innovating pathways between the non-Indigenous business sector and Indigenous people in business. As the owner of Terri Janke and Company, a unique legal and consulting firm, she manages her team to deliver excellent results to a diverse client base. Dr Janke advises on legal matters including intellectual property, business law and heritage. She developed the True Tracks® ICIP Protocols, a framework for Indigenous engagement and has written leading ICIP protocols for various sectors, including the arts, museums, archives, film, research and environmental.

Emma L Johnston

Professor Emma Johnston AO FTSE FRSN is Dean of Science and Professor of Marine Ecology and Ecotoxicology at UNSW Sydney. She studies the impacts of a wide range of human activities on marine and coastal ecosystems, and how we can build ecological resilience. Her research is conducted in diverse field environments, from Antarctica to the Great Barrier Reef and temperate Australian estuaries.  She is an elected fellow of the Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering (ATSE) and in 2018 was made an Officer of the Order of Australia (OA). Professor Johnston is a national advocate for the science and technology sector, and is a Director on the Board of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority. She consults with industry and government through the development and implementation of new biomonitoring and ecological engineering techniques, and frequently contributes expert opinion to state, national and international agencies. 

Chapter authors

Graeme Clarke

Dr Graeme Clark is a Senior Research Associate in the Centre for Marine Science and Innovation at the University of New South Wales. He has a background in coastal and marine ecology, working in diverse environments from the tropics to Antarctica. His research focuses on marine biology, invasive species and impacts of human activities on coastal ecosystems.

Sonia Cooper

Ms Sonia Cooper is a Yorta Yorta woman raised by her Nan on Cummeragunja. She is a community member. She has a strong interest in culture, the environment, science, policy, law, contracts and geopolitics. She is currently completing her Bachelor of Science degree at the Australian National University. She works as the Living Murray Indigenous Facilitator for Barmah National Park for Yorta Yorta Nation and is a great advocate for the progression of Indigenous rights. Ms Cooper has been engaged to sit on various boards around the country, including CSIRO’s Indigenous Reference Group in 2019 and science panels during the past 10 years. She has been living in the bush next to the Murray River for the past year, and can see and feel Country.

Oliver Costello

Mr Oliver Costello is a Bundjalung man from the Northern Rivers of New South Wales and has been actively engaged in cultural land management projects. He believes strongly in the role of Aboriginal culture as a keystone to maintaining livelihoods, supporting identity, connecting to Country, and enabling healthy and regenerative communities to care for Country. He co-founded the Firesticks Initiative and is a founding Director of both the Firesticks Alliance Indigenous Corporation and the Jagun Alliance Aboriginal Corporation. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Adult Education and Community Management from the University of Technology Sydney. He has a broad range of experience in natural cultural resource management, cultural fire practices, Aboriginal joint management partnerships, culturally significant species and threatened species management. Mr Costello works to support a range of research, policy, advocacy and on-ground projects. He is passionate about Aboriginal leadership, empowerment, partnerships, and recognition of cultural knowledge and practice. 

Zena Cumpston

Zena Cumpston is a Barkandji woman with family connections to Broken Hill and Menindee in western New South Wales. She currently lives in Melbourne on the lands of the Wurundjeri people with her partner and 2 young boys. Zena works as a writer, curator, consultant and researcher, and is passionate about truth-telling and undertaking projects that directly benefit her community and Country. In 2021, she curated the show Emu Sky for Science Gallery Melbourne, bringing together more than 30 Aboriginal community members from across south-eastern Australia. Running until July 2022, Emu Sky explores Aboriginal knowledge through artworks, research and storytelling, and is accompanied by an extensive education program. In 2022, her book Plants, co-authored with Professor Lesley Head and Associate Professor Michael-Shawn Fletcher, will be released as part of the First Knowledges series.

Kathryn M Emmerson

Dr Kathryn Emmerson is a Principal Research Scientist at CSIRO, interested in how emissions of gases and particles affect local and regional air quality. She is an expert in developing new parameterisations for atmospheric chemistry models, including the CSIRO Chemical Transport Model (C-CTM). She has worked on a diverse range of air quality problems involving smoke, secondary organic aerosol, inorganic chemistry on sea salt aerosol, pollen, mercury, and biogenic gas phase emissions. Dr Emmerson represents Australian research interests on the Southern Hemisphere Working Group of International Global Atmospheric Chemistry.

Karen Evans

Dr Karen Evans is a Team Leader and Principal Research Scientist with CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere based in Hobart, Tasmania. Dr Evans is involved in research focused on progressing scientific understanding of, and developing options to improve, marine resource management, particularly in relation to national and international fisheries, and threatened, endangered and protected species. Her recent research has employed multiple disciplinary approaches to investigate the connectivity of shared resources and provide baseline information on the spatial dynamics of top predators in relation to human use and activities in the marine environment. Her projects deliver strategic research to national agencies; regional organisations, including regional fisheries management organisations; and international agencies, including the United Nations.

Mibu Fischer

Ms Mibu Fischer is a descendant of the Noonuccal, Ngugu and Gorenpul clans of Quandamooka. Ms Fischer is an early career marine ethnoecologist within the multi-use ecosystems tropical coastal group, in CSIRO’s Oceans and Atmosphere, having joined CSIRO as an Indigenous Cadet in 2009. She graduated from Southern Cross University with a Bachelor of Marine Science and Management before completing a Graduate Diploma in Natural Resource Management from Charles Sturt University in 2016. Ms Fischer is an Aboriginal scientist with engagement skills for strengthening partnerships between First Nations communities and the research sector. Her specific interests are around traditional knowledge (science) and management practices being considered within modern-day fisheries, coastal and conservation management. She joins with other Indigenous and traditional practitioners to strengthen the global Indigenous voice and leadership in areas of marine research and coastal Indigenous livelihoods. Her goal is to bridge a gap that draws attention to the Indigenous communities facing the frontline of impacts and changes to coastlines, ecosystems and livelihoods from climate change impacts.

Janice Green

Ms Janice Green leads the team at the Bureau of Meteorology responsible for preparing the bureau’s national suite of water information products and services to fulfil its obligations under the Commonwealth Water Act 2007 as the national water information agency. Her specialist areas are in hydrology, hydrometeorology and water resources assessment, and she has been influential in developing methods and preparing guidelines for undertaking analyses in the Australian hydroclimatic environment. She has worked as a hydrologist in the public sector, at both state and national levels, in academia and in private industry. 

Pia Harkness

Dr Pia Harkness is a social scientist with interests in collaborative environmental governance and management, and sustainable natural resource–based livelihoods. With a background in spatial science, her interest in community development and environmental issues led her towards the social sciences. She currently coordinates a Traditional Owner water quality grant program at the Great Barrier Reef Foundation. She previously worked with a CSIRO team that focuses on transdisciplinary and interdisciplinary research around knowledge co-creation, and bringing together Indigenous and western knowledge systems in environmental management. Dr Harkness completed her PhD in 2020. Her research examined the implications of marine conservation and rural development policies on local communities in Savu Raijua District, eastern Indonesia. 

Rosemary Hill

Dr Rosemary Hill is a Senior Principal Research Scientist with CSIRO Land and Water, and an Adjunct Professor in James Cook University’s Division of Tropical Environments and Societies, based in Cairns. Dr Hill leads research on environmental governance and multiple knowledge systems, and their impacts on biodiversity, ecosystem services and climate change, with a special focus on Indigenous knowledge. She has more than 60 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters, and more than 100 peer-reviewed reports and conference papers, on these topics. Through applying this science and leading others, she works with communities at multiple scales to foster integration of diverse knowledge systems in sustainability. Her science helps others understand social–ecological dimensions of sustainability, particularly in remote and regional areas.

Sarah Hill

Dr Sarah Hill has a passion for creating thriving cities. As Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the expanded Western Parkland City Authority, Dr Hill is leading the delivery of Australia’s largest and most ambitious city-building project of the past century. This work builds on the vision she co-created as the inaugural CEO of the Greater Sydney Commission. Under Dr Hill’s leadership, the commission developed new ways of engaging with citizens, measuring and monitoring key planning outcomes, and aligning growth with infrastructure. Dr Hill has received numerous professional awards locally and internationally, including the 2012 UDIA Women in Development Award, the 2015 NSW Planner of the Year award and the 2016 PIA Australian Planner of the Year award. She is a Fellow and past-president of the Planning Institute of Australia (NSW Division); is an Adjunct Professor at the University of Technology Sydney’s Faculty of Design, Architecture and Building; and continues to be a thought leader with a particular focus on the economics of cities and the feasibility of development. 

Alistair Hobday

Dr Alistair Hobday is Research Director for the Coasts and Ocean Research Program at CSIRO. His research focus is on investigating the impacts of climate change and extreme events on marine biodiversity and fishery resources, and developing, prioritising and testing adaptation options to underpin sustainable use and conservation into the future. He is former co-chair of the international CLIOTOP (Climate Impacts on Top Ocean Predators) program and is a current member of the steering committee for the international Integrated Marine Biosphere Research program. 

Barry Hunter

Dr Barry J Hunter is a descendant from the Djabugay-speaking people of the Cairns hinterland. He grew up beside the Barron River in the rainforest near Kuranda. Dr Hunter’s experience includes employment in government conservation agencies, the mining and exploration industry, community and not-for-profit organisations, and recently as a consultant working around Aboriginal land management, the carbon industry and community economic development. He has more than 30 years experience in Aboriginal affairs, particularly in land, natural and cultural resource management. Dr Hunter has a Bachelor of Applied Science from Charles Sturt University and has a keen interest in the work that community rangers do in looking after land, fire management and cultural heritage. He also has a real passion for building community capacity and planning that deliver sustainable social, cultural and economic outcomes within our communities. Dr Hunter has run a successful consulting business for 7 years, working in areas including Indigenous economic, community and social development; Indigenous land management and cultural heritage; and reviews of government-funded programs.

Cass Hunter

Dr Cass Hunter is a descendant of Kuku Yalanji and Maluiligal nations. She is an Indigenous social ecological research scientist with CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere in Cairns. Dr Hunter leads research on collaborative environmental design, usability and uptake of tools, research translation, and development of participatory tools to support sustainable livelihoods and ecosystems. For more than a decade, she has engaged with many inspiring Indigenous young people, rangers, leaders, educators and scholars. Her focus is on building our national and international networks of Indigenous practitioners to share and develop learnings to place Indigenous people at the heart of environmental and economic co-design and advances.

Melita Keywood

Dr Melita Keywood is a Senior Principal Research Scientist in the Climate Science Centre of the Oceans at CSIRO. Dr Keywood’s research expertise lies in the chemical and microphysical properties of atmospheric aerosol, which she uses in a variety of applications, ranging from tracking long-term changes in aerosol microphysics and chemical composition of the remote marine boundary layer to understanding aerosol growth and secondary organic aerosol in urban airsheds and biomass burning plumes. Dr Keywood was the 2019 recipient of the Werner Strauss Clean Air Achievement Award from the Clean Air Society of Australia and New Zealand, and is the President of the International Commission on Atmospheric Chemistry and Global Pollution. 

Andrew Klekociuk

Dr Andrew Klekociuk is a Principal Research Scientist and leader of the Atmosphere and Ice Sheet Section in the Science Branch of the Australian Antarctic Division. His active research interests include the interactions between ozone and climate, the role of clouds and aerosols in the climate of the Southern Ocean, and interactions between the tropics and Antarctica. He is a committee member of the International Ozone Commission.

Anne McConnell

Ms Anne McConnell is a heritage consultant with broad-based interests and expertise in Australian archaeology, cultural heritage management and Quaternary geoscience. Ms McConnell has more than 40 years of working experience in the government and private sectors. She works on both Indigenous and historic cultural heritage, covering diverse areas of heritage and diverse contexts, such as protected areas; production forestry; and urban, rural and remote areas, including Antarctica and the subantarctic. Ms McConnell’s heritage work has included the development of statewide management systems for forest heritage, and collaborative regional heritage assessment projects, including the evolution and Indigenous history of use of freshwater lagoons in south-eastern Australia and the identification of places of National Heritage significance in Australia’s arid zone. Ms McConnell has also had a long-term interest in terrestrial protected area management, initially through membership of the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Consultative Committee and the National Parks and Wildlife Advisory Council. Ms McConnell is a long-term member of Australia ICOMOS and is currently the Convenor of the Australian ICOMOS Indigenous Heritage Reference Group.

Dan Metcalfe

Dr Dan Metcalfe is the Director of CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere. Dr Metcalfe brings a strong record in science leadership that spans the broad domain of environmental research, deep network across the innovation system and successful stakeholder management at all levels. Recently, he led the coordination of CSIRO’s science response to the 2019–20 summer bushfires, and subsequent initiatives to improve government, community and industry resilience to climate-related natural hazards. He has also led CSIRO efforts to address the environmental and social consequences of the coincidence of drought, water allocations and extreme weather in the Murray–Darling Basin, as well as contributing to the ongoing management of the Great Barrier Reef as member of the Reef 2050 Advisory Committee. He was awarded a PhD from the University of Cambridge for work in the tropics of South-East Asia, and has also worked across southern and eastern Africa and Australasia. He spent more than 2 decades working in landscape ecology and sustainable resource management across the rainforests and savannas of northern and eastern Australia. Dr Metcalfe has contributed to the development of monitoring and assessment protocols, provided advice and conducted assessments and reviews for state and territory governments and the national governments of Australia and New Zealand. He was a member of Minister Ley’s Wildlife and Threatened Species Bushfire Recovery Expert Panel and was author of the ‘Land’ theme in the 2016 state of the environment report.

Bradley Moggridge

Associate Professor Moggridge is a proud Murri from the Kamilaroi Nation living on Ngunnawal Country in Canberra. He is a researcher in Indigenous water science (with qualifications in hydrogeology and environmental science), as well as a part-time PhD scholar at the University of Canberra. Until June 2021, he was the Indigenous Liaison Officer for the Threatened Species Recovery Hub under the National Environmental Science Program. He is the current VicePresident of the Australian Freshwater Sciences Society and member of the Wentworth Group. Professor Moggridge has won several career awards, has presented widely and is on many committees – from local to international – adding to his 25 years in water and environmental science, cultural science, regulation, water planning and management, including policy development, legislative reviews, applied research and project management. Professor Moggridge hopes to encourage future generations to pursue interests in STEM, promote his ancestors’ knowledge of water and mentor emerging Indigenous scientists.

Damian Morgan-Bulled

Mr Damian Morgan-Bulled is a proud Yorta Yorta man based on the Dhungala (Murray) River at Echuca–Moama on the Victoria – New South Wales border, within Yorta Yorta Country. Mr Morgan-Bulled has worked within the cultural heritage and natural resource management field for more than 25 years, including stints with the Murray–Darling Basin Authority based in Canberra and the Department of Sustainability and Environment, Victoria. He currently works as the Executive Officer for the Yorta Yorta Traditional Owner Land Management Board, which oversees the implementation of the Joint Management Plan for the Barmah National Park in conjunction with Yorta Yorta Nation Aboriginal Corporation and Parks Victoria. Damian has represented the Yorta Yorta Nation on several key negotiating teams and committees at regional, state and national levels. Recently, Mr Morgan-Bulled co-chaired the National First Peoples Gathering on Climate Change Steering Committee that co-designed the protocols and agenda for the National First Peoples Gathering on Climate Change. He is considered a senior leader within the Aboriginal community of Echuca–Moama and has well-established networks that have seen him recently present First Nations people’s issues in climate change at both the Australian Meteorological and Oceanographic Society and Knowledge Exchange for Climate Adaptation Platforms forums.

Joe Morrison (scoping paper)

Mr Joe Morrison is a Dagoman and Mualgal man with more than 25 years experience working with Indigenous people. Mr Morrison has a Bachelor of Arts in Land Management from the University of Sydney and an Honorary Doctorate from the University of New South Wales for his contribution to Indigenous land and sea management, policy development, advocacy and related topics nationally. Mr Morrison is currently the Managing Director of Six Season Pty Ltd, which aims to advance Indigenous policy through practical solutions. Mr Morrison’s previous roles have included Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Northern Land Council, founding CEO of the North Australian Indigenous Land and Sea Management Alliance (NAILSMA), and an Indigenous Land Management Facilitator. Mr Morrison was unable to continue as lead author of the ‘Indigenous’ chapter due to his appointment as Group Chief Executive Officer of the Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation. 

Helen Murphy

Dr Helen Murphy is a Principal Research Scientist at CSIRO Land and Water. She leads research focused on understanding the scale and magnitude of individual and cumulative threats to Australian biodiversity and the effectiveness of management interventions. She has a background in plant ecology and collaborates across domains spanning conservation, natural resource management, biosecurity and health, and sustainable development. Dr Murphy is based in north Queensland and maintains a strong research interest in tropical ecosystem dynamics. A particular focus is the impacts of invasive species, climate change and extreme climate events on the composition, structure and function of tropical forests.

Gabriela Quintana Vigiola

Dr Gabriela Quintana Vigiola is an academic and consultant in the urban design and planning sectors. She joined the University of Technology Sydney in 2012, and lectures in urban planning at the School of the Built Environment. Her interests range from urban design to cultural and psychosocial studies. Her current research focuses on social–urban issues, including informal settlements, housing for ‘vulnerable’ populations and place making. Dr Quintana Vigiola’s previous research focused on place making through culture in informal settlements in Caracas, Venezuela. She is currently developing a study about housing for domestic violence survivors, with a focus on place, displacement and violence.

Becky Schmidt

Dr Becky Schmidt is a Principal Environmental Scientist at CSIRO Land and Water, leading interdisciplinary teams to deliver environmental information that government, community and industry use to make decisions, protect our environment and prosper sustainably. She works with researchers from a range of disciplines, complementing their specialist domain knowledge with her generalist understanding of systems, to address challenges in sustainability, agriculture, coal resource development, and land and water science. Currently, she is collaborating with partners to implement the Australian Government’s strategy and action plan for a common national approach to environmental–economic accounting, helping government and businesses make balanced decisions using consistent information on the environment, economy and society.

Linda Thomas

Ms Linda Thomas is a Research Technician in the Coasts and Oceans program at CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere. She has a background in marine geoscience and data management. Her work focuses on marine resources and ecosystem adaptation, both nationally and internationally, to a changing climate.

Rowan Trebilco

Dr Rowan Trebilco is a Team Leader in the Coasts and Ocean Research Program at CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere. He also co-leads the Environmental Change and Adaptation research theme in the Centre for Marine Socioecology at the University of Tasmania, where he is an Adjunct Senior Researcher. His research focuses on assessing status, trends, risks and opportunities for marine social–ecological systems and on developing strategies for climate change adaptation. He has worked across theoretical ecosystem ecology, statistical and mechanistic modelling, fisheries and natural resource management, in temperate, tropical and Antarctic oceans.

Blair Trewin

Dr Blair Trewin is a climate scientist at the Bureau of Meteorology. His specialist areas are the development of long-term historical datasets for the assessment of climate change, and the analysis of extreme events, both current and historical. He was the lead developer of the main long-term Australian temperature dataset ACORN-SAT. He was a lead author for Working Group I (physical science) of the recently released Sixth Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. He is a member of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) Expert Team on Climate Monitoring and Assessment, and has led a number of WMO annual global state of the climate reports. He was also President of the Australian Meteorological and Oceanographic Society in 2012–14.

John Turnbull

Dr John Turnbull is a Research Fellow at UNSW Sydney. He specialises in social–ecological research in marine and coastal contexts, working on environmental stewardship, sustainability, conservation and management. Dr Turnbull is a marine ecologist and social scientist with 39 years of experience spanning roles in academia, consulting, stakeholder engagement, business ownership, project management and engineering.

Stephen van Leeuwen

Professor Stephen van Leeuwen, Australia’s first Indigenous Chair of Biodiversity and Environmental Science at Curtin University, is a proud Wardandi Noongar with strong connections to Country in the Busselton – Margaret River region of Western Australia. As a botanical ecologist, research scientist and executive manager, Professor van Leeuwen has established a diverse pedigree across biodiversity inventory, landscape ecology, threat mitigation, nature conservation and sustainable land management domains. He is empowered with the skills to combine his broad scientific competencies with a commitment to leadership in environmental research. Professor van Leeuwen is a member of the Indigenous Advisory Committee of the Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment, and Senior Indigenous Facilitator and Deputy Hub Leader of the National Environmental Science Program’s Resilient Landscape Hub. He also contributes to the Threatened Species Scientific Committee, the National Landcare Review Expert Reference Panel, and other national, state and nongovernment committees. Professor van Leeuwen is passionate about Closing the Gap on Indigenous disadvantage and achieving self-determination. He believes that, to realise self-determination, it is critical that decisions about the livelihoods and wellbeing of Indigenous Australians and most importantly their cultures, customs, heritage and stewardship of land, water and sea Country are made with, if not by, them – Always Was, Always Will Be.

Stephanie von Gavel

Stephanie von Gavel is a Business Development Manager with CSIRO, supporting CSIRO Land and Water, and CSIRO more broadly, in the area of Indigenous science. Ms von Gavel has a science/law background with more than 25 years experience in technology transfer, business and strategy development, and stakeholder engagement in a range of sectors – biotechnology, agriculture, biodiversity, information management, international research for development and inclusive innovation in an Indigenous context. She currently co-chairs CSIRO’s Indigenous Cultural & Intellectual Property Working Group and is a member of the IEEE P2890 – Recommended Practice for Provenance of Indigenous Peoples’ Data.

Dirk Welsford

Dr Dirk Welsford is a Principal Research Chief Scientist in the Australian Antarctic Division, and previously the Acting Chief Scientist. His interests include the use of science and logic in developing resource use and conservation strategies; effective communication of science for use by policy-makers; and the role of human relationships in effective environmental decision-making. He has represented Australia at meetings for the Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) for more than 15 years, and is currently the Chair of the CCAMLR Scientific Committee.

Barbara Wienecke

Dr Barbara Wienecke is a Senior Research Scientist at the Australian Antarctic Division. She has studied the foraging ecology of penguins and other seabirds for more than 20 years. Since 1993, she has spent many seasons in Antarctica, the subantarctic and South America, and has published the results of her work in international journals and books. Dr Wienecke is a member of the International Union for Conservation of Nature Penguin Specialist Group and a member of the Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels working groups.

Kristen Williams

Dr Kristen Williams is a Principal Research Scientist at CSIRO Land and Water, with extensive experience in research management, coordination and delivery. As an ecological geographer, she specialises in the integration of ecosystem and landscape sciences through multidisciplinary team collaborations to generate data and knowledge products informing systems of ecologically sustainable land management, where biodiversity prospers, ecosystems function and adapt, and ecosystem services meet the needs of all people. Dr Williams has extensive experience co-designing research with end users to ensure that outputs meet their needs, with a focus on biodiversity conservation, vegetation management policies, natural resource management planning and prioritising conservation investment strategies. Currently, she is collaborating with the Australian Government to operationalise the Habitat Condition Assessment System. Recently, she worked with the New South Wales Government on methods underpinning the Biodiversity Indicator Program.

Emma Woodward

Dr Emma Woodward is a Senior Research Scientist and leader in co-design who brings together different knowledge systems and types to deliver collaborative solutions to land and sea management at regional and national scales. Based with CSIRO Land and Water, her research frequently involves partnering with Indigenous communities to co-develop methods, tools, protocols and guidelines that can facilitate understanding and inclusion of diverse knowledges, values and interests in natural resource planning and management and enterprise development. Dr Woodward has previously worked on Our Knowledge Our Way (OKOW), a transdisciplinary science initiative to produce the first Indigenous-led guidelines for best practices when working with Indigenous knowledge in caring for Country. The outcomes of the OKOW guidelines have made a foundational impact in setting a new standard in how to engage Indigenous people in partnering in science.

Acknowledgements

The authors thank colleagues in the state, territory and Australian governments for their contributions to the thematic reports, and their critical reviews of scope, content and detail in this overview and the thematic reports. The substantial efforts of anonymous peer reviewers are also gratefully acknowledged. The authors also thank the Australian Government Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment SoE team (listed below), led by Andrew Murrell, Director, and including Jeanette Corbitt, Executive Director SoE; the Biotext team (listed below), led by Kylie Evans; James Hattam, Tasmanian Land Conservancy; Tanya Koeneman; Dr Andy Sheppard, CSIRO; Dr David Westcott, CSIRO; the User Reference Group, led by Peter Cochrane, User Reference Group Chair; the Murawin team (listed below), led by Carol Vale, Chief Executive Officer; the EY Digital team; the Indigenous Advisory Committee; the State of the Environment User Reference Group; all Indigenous people who contributed to the report; and the State of the Environment Project Board.

Responsibility for the information and views set out in this report lies entirely with the authors. These views do not necessarily reflect the position of the Australian Government or contributors.

SoE team members:

Mohammed Ali
James Balzer
Sarah-May Bennett
Belinda Brown
Beth Brunoro
Indyana Chambers Galloway
Jeanette Corbitt
Kirsty Elliott
Lachlan Farquhar
Sue Fyfe
Emma Hyland
Christina Lees
Darcy Lower
Nathan Mann
Robert Markham
Mary Milne
Roger Morrison
Bede Moses
Dennis Murphy
Andrew Murrell
Laura Perrott
Jaye Pertile
Nick Post
Gina Richman
Simon Roberts
Phillip Rofe
JJ Sadkowsky
Kimberley Shields
Maya Stuart-Fox
James Tracey
Gillian Wright

Biotext team members:

Carrie DeHaan
Kylie Evans
Andina Faragher
Darren Goossens
Emily Henkel
Julie Irish
Tim Meyen
Janna Randell
Richard Stanford
Karma Tshering
Carolyn Weiller

Murawin team members:

Sophia Anagnostaras
Cecilia Anthony
Sarah Jones
Carol Vale