Community Partnerships
Community advocacy and ongoing involvement in the long-term management of the Coorong is fundamental to its future health and sustainability, and it is important that the community are supported to build their skills and knowledge to become caretakers of the precious wetland.
The Community Partnerships project aims to:
- Raise awareness across the broader South Australian community of the importance of the Coorong, the environmental issues facing it and what is being done to continue to improve the Coorong’s health, and inviting community input into Healthy Coorong, Healthy Basin (HCHB) program activities
- Build relationships with the local community to ensure information, knowledge and experience is shared effectively and to facilitate smooth project implementation, including through basing staff in the region and providing significant opportunities for local people to get involved early and share their knowledge and experience.
- Build community knowledge and skills through involvement in citizen science and on-ground activities, particularly focusing on local communities.
- Partner with key stakeholders, including the Coorong Partnership, to ensure their values and knowledge are reflected in HCHB program activities.
What we are doing
The Community Partnerships project is supporting all project engagement activities through:
- Meetings, webinars, and workshops
- Community updates
- Surveys
- Annual Science Forum
- Citizen science “BioBlitz” events.
Citizen science
The HCHB Citizen Science project forms part of the Community Partnerships project and is directly aligned with the research being delivered through the Trials and Investigations (T & I) project. The Citizen Science project aims to:
- Build the connection between the researchers and local communities, promoting a sense of pride for the scientific work being done in the community
- Improve the understanding of scientific survey practices and the biodiversity of the local environment
- Provide exposure to citizen science as a way of contributing valuable scientific observations and data
- Enhance participants’ sense of place and community by increasing their knowledge and appreciation of local ecology while connecting with one another.
A short film ‘Science and Citizens of the Coorong’ produced by the SA Department for Environment and Water and the Murraylands and Riverland Landscape Board documents the story of South Australia’s iconic Coorong and the scientists and citizens helping return it to a healthy system.
HCHB will be holding a number of citizen science events throughout the program. To register to receive information on citizen science opportunities email project.coorong@sa.gov.au
Get involved
We are working with First Nations, local communities and the broader South Australian community throughout the life of the Healthy Coorong, Healthy Basin program.
Find out about any current opportunities or email project.coorong@sa.gov.au.
Community Updates
Sign up to receive Healthy Coorong, Healthy Basin updates and opportunities, including citizen science activities and community consultations.
