Firesticks

🌳 “It makes me feel really good doing this project because we can demonstrate and prove Indigenous land management, not just Cultural Burning…work and they have worked for thousands of years and we are actually the oldest scientists alive.” – Matthew Whitelock, Bundjalung Man and Cultural Fire Practitioner 📽️ Join Matty as he talks sick vs healthy Country and how Indigenous knowledge can heal landscapes – benefiting both farmers and the broader community. 🤝🏾 Supported by the Australian Government's Climate-Smart Agriculture Program, Firesticks is bringing together graziers and Traditional Owners to create healthier agricultural landscapes together under the 'Indigenous Knowledge for Climate Resilience' project. 🎞️ Gudjal Country. Credit: Seth Seden and Bella Laifoo #CulturalBurning #IndigenousKnowledge #LandManagement #ClimateResilience #Firesticks #NaturalHeritageTrust #ClimateSmartAgriculture #FirstNationsLed #HealthyCountry Australian Government Department of Agriculture and Water Resources

"Much of the current conversation around how to finance nature repair and nature-based solutions with the current system is like trying to put a square peg in a round hole. I want to talk about what needs to shift— the longer-term change that needs to start now.” Craig North, Bidjara man and Firesticks Executive Director, just returned from a jam-packed couple of weeks as part of Pollination Foundation's 2025 Nature Finance Exchange. Here, he was joined by Co-chair of our Board and Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre's Andry Sculthorpe (Pakana, Tralwulway) and a group of fantastic First Nations leaders leaders, funders, practitioners, and policy experts from Australia, Canada and Indonesia. Together, they explored how Indigenous-led sustainability solutions and innovative finance models can reshape economies and support thriving communities and ecosystems. 👀 Stay tuned for more updates from this insightful trip!

Animals on Country is the newest children's book from Tagalaka man, Firesticks co-founder and author Victor Steffensen, with artwork by Sandra Steffensen. Walk with Uncle Kuu as he teaches children on Country about the many ways in which we can care for the animals, and highlights the special relationship between all people and the environment. Taking a spot right on the shelf beside 'The Trees' and 'Looking After Country with Fire' this new arrival is a way we can share the important work we do at Firesticks with our next generation, our jarjums. Available now at Allen & Unwin: https://ow.ly/JSj550XsvwA — Thank you Barbara at Story Links for having a read and sharing your thoughts 🙌🏾 #AnimalsOnCountry #VictorSteffensen #SandraSteffensen #ChildrensBooks #CaringForCountry #IndigenousAuthors #AustralianBooks #FiresticksAlliance #AustralianAnimals

In a powerful act of cultural revival and healing of Yarta (country), the Kaurna Firesticks Team recently carried out a Cultural Burn at Pakapakanthi (Victoria Park / Park 16) in the Adelaide Park Lands. The ceremony brought together four generations of Kaurna people, who worked side by side to revive traditional fire practices and share knowledge that has cared for Country for thousands of years. Guided by Kaurna Elders and conducted in partnership with City of Adelaide the burn supported the restoration of native grasslands and habitat for species such as the threatened Chequered Copper Butterfly. Reconnecting community members with their ancestral lands, it is burns like these that support intergenerational knowledge sharing, restore cultural identity and form understanding between Kaurna people and the wider Adelaide community. These are special times 💫

“No matter the distance between us all, First Nations peoples are never apart. We are bound in the same struggles, the same responsibilities and carry the same unbreakable bonds to Country. Whether in our ancestral lands or on Country across the ocean, a big connection we all share is the health of our people being connected to the health of Country. We are all one story that is written from the same spirit.” - Germaine Paulson, Mununjali and Wulli Wulli Man, Firesticks Regional Coordinator for South-East QLD. Caring for Country is a universal thread that runs through all of us. At Firesticks, we've been privileged to see how great things can happen when we share that knowledge and grow together. In July, we had the incredible honour of hosting our Yunesit’in friends all the way from Canada on Buluwai Country in Far North Queensland. With plans already in motion to visit them in their hometown early next year, we're reflecting on special moments of our time together - sharing our fire, culture and stories with them. Read more on the Firesticks Journal: https://lnkd.in/gCUmHV2d 📍Buluwai and Yalanji Country 📸 Josh Neufeld Photography for Gathering Voices Society.

Three months after the burn, Country is coming back strong! 💪🏾 What was once a high fuel load of dry, nutrient poor grass (including invasive Guinea and Signal grass that steal moisture) is now a lush carpet of resilient native grasses. This is the grass we burn for! The fire has transformed our Bloodwood Country, traditionally a source of medicine and bush tucker leaving a mosaic landscape that's thriving and easy to traverse. We can now see... New growth - Native turkey bush, hakea, native grape, legumes, and grasses. Animals thriving - Fresh scats and digging mean animals can reach regenerated plants, also helping with soil health. Protected habitats - Patches of old grass and sticks remain, creating cover for animals like the endangered Bettong and nesting material for birds. By bringing back traditional burning practices and letting Country inform our process every step of the way we keep the entire ecosystem thriving. Respecting and managing Country as it has been for thousands of years. 📍Buluwai Country 📸 & Notes on Country: Matthew Whitelock #Firesticks #CulturalBurning #CountryResilience #3MonthsPostBurn

🌿 One week on from our time in Buluwai Country, where we gathered with our Firesticks family for our annual strategic workshop – to reflect on where we've been and plan for a bright future. 🖐🏾 A huge thank you to Uncle Bertie for the warm welcome to Country, and to the incredible Mayi Wunba dancers. 🔥 We're grateful for the opportunity to return to the site of a Cultural Burn we conducted earlier this year – seeing it now healthy, green, and refreshed. 🌱 This week of learning and sharing reminded us that we're all on the journey to heal Country together. As one staff member put it: "When you love what you're doing, is it really work?"

🔥 Fire, Culture, and Connection on Dharug Country 🌳 The recent Cultural Burn at Mt Sion, Glenbrook was a day of healing, learning, and shared purpose, bringing traditional knowledge and modern partnerships together to care for Ngurra (Country). Led by Dharug Traditional Owners and First Nations community, the day began with a powerful Smoking Ceremony led by Uncle Chris Tobin, grounding us all in the deep bond between people, fire, and Country. Watching the gentle, purposeful winter fire creep across the land was a living reminder that fire, when applied with care, breathes life back into the ecosystem. The low-intensity burn cleaned the ground, opened the soil, and awakened native seeds, all guided by the principle of 'Right Fire for Right Country'. This collaboration between Dharug Traditional Owners, Firesticks, Greater Sydney Local Land Services, Blue Mountains City Council and Fire and Rescue NSW is an example of how supporting co-management empowers Traditional Owners to lead the way in respectfully caring for Ngurra. Big thanks to Wailwan/Dunghutti woman Cathy Rendell from Blue Mountains City Council for sharing this story with us 🔥 "For many, the day was described as grounding and hopeful - a beautiful example of what happens when traditional knowledge and partnerships come together. The Mt Sion Cultural Burn stands as a celebration of Country, culture, and community - and a reminder that with the right fire, life always finds its way back." 📷 Dharug Ngurra. Credit: Cathy Rendell