The Latest Breaking News from Country

A lot of things scientists study are part of Country – the lands, waters and skies to which First Nations peoples are connected. In Australia, there has to date been little respect for the significance or value of cultural knowledge in scientific practice.

A community has established a garden in the hopes of reconnecting young people with culture and Country through elders' stories and hands-on learning.

The Great Barrier Reef, which supports an estimated 64,000 jobs and has a social and economic value of around A$6.4 billion, is under threat due to human-induced climate change.

Despite decades of policy interventions, the health of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples is declining against defined targets. And yet, health and wellbeing continue to be measured against deficit-focused “gaps” between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Australians in health research and policy.

How can a desert burn? Australia’s vast deserts aren’t just sand dunes – they’re often dotted with flammable spinifex grass hummocks. When heavy rains fall, grass grows quickly before drying out. That’s how a desert can burn.

As animals move across the desert, they leave tracks, diggings and droppings. For skilled trackers, reading these signs is like watching a movie. A story of who was there and what they were doing unfolds in front of them.

Aboriginal people were forced off Country, taken from their families and forced onto missions where they were not allowed to leave, an inquiry has been told.

For millennia, Indigenous knowledge holders have passed down lore to the next generation. Much lore describes the relationships between people and Country, including custodial responsibilities to care for other species as kin.

A story of self-discovery, connection to Country and brotherhood will be performed through dance as part of Brisbane Festival.

Kamilaroi Country lies in far northwest New South Wales, past Tamworth and crossing over the Queensland border. Here, the bunyip bird (Australasian bittern, Botaurus poiciloptilus), and the brolga (Grus rubicunda or burraalga in Kamilaroi) have been part of life, lore, spirit, dance and culture with Country for thousands of generations.

First Nations people at the forefront of protecting country have gathered to share their land and sea management strategies for the first time in a decade.