Chairman's summer message
As we head into summer, La Nina controls the weather so one day it is warm, the next cold, but regular rain is the norm. Not something to complain about unless you are a crop farmer trying to harvest, or in the case of Mulloon Creek Natural Farms, trying to instal new infrastructure and repair roads. Our last 12 monthly rainfall is almost double the long-term average so quite a change from just two years ago when we had record numbers of drought months!
This is a good practical example of the predictions of extremities in weather and something that had great focus in October with COP26 in Glasgow. The good news for MCNF is that with the work on the Mulloon Rehydration Initiative (MRI), the consistent rain has been well banked in our landscape so will provide hydration for years to come. The Mulloon Rehydration Initiative is jointly funded through the Mulloon Institute and the Australian Government’s National Landcare Program.
Media coverage
In the lead up to COP26 the Federal Government announced its commitment to net-zero by 2050 and its plan to get there had a strong focus on the role of soil carbon sequestration. I thought it was important to highlight the opportunity for farmers and explain the important role landscape rehydration plays in sequestering soil carbon. An Opinion Editorial I prepared, and with the assistance of Newgate Communications, was published in a number of News Ltd publications around the country. (‘Sequestration is a win for farmers’, Courier Mail, 28 October 2021) I was pleased to get very positive feedback following its publication and we have also received lots of interest in our work which continues to expand geographically.
Around Australia
Quite recently our person in WA, Lance Mudgway, conducted our second NT workshop, this time in the Red Centre town of Aileron. Lance has also been busy in “non-lockdown” WA which you can read more about our here.
Sam Skeat in North Queensland has also been able to work with little restrictions but our landscape planner, Joe Skuse, has now been held up for months not being allowed to relocate to Queensland to bolster our presence there. With recent announcements that should happen soon and he can give the on-ground support to Sam. Read more about our recent activities in Queensland.
Collaboration
In all that we do, we are experiencing wonderful collaboration with organisations that complement our work. A specific example is the recently signed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the National Landcare Network (NLN). For many years we have worked directly with Landcare groups as these locally based organisations are ideal connections to the broader community in which our landscape projects reside. It made much sense to develop a closer working partnership with the NLN. Jim Adams, NLN’s CEO, could also see the opportunities an MOU could open up for increased on-ground environmental repair. You can read more about the MOU here.
Scientific publication
A very important aspect of our work is the science behind what we do and equally important is talking about it. Our Science Advisory Council (SAC) which is led by Emeritus Professor Stephen Dovers has embarked on the writing of the story of the Mulloon Rehydration Initiative, with many contributing authors from TMI staff and the SAC, including Dr David Freudenberger. We are pleased to advise that the paper, ‘The Mulloon Rehydration Initiative: the Project’s Establishment and Monitoring Framework’, has been accepted for publication in the prestigious Journal of Ecological Management & Restoration in early 2022. The journal aims to bridge the gap between the ecologist's perspective and field manager's experience and answers the growing need among land managers for reliable, relevant information and acknowledges the need for two-way communication in devising new hypotheses, sound experimentation, effective treatments and reliable monitoring. This is a very important achievement for TMI and our SAC!
Annual Reporting
Finally, in early December we held our AGM and presented this year’s Annual Report. It tells our story of the past year including reports of our activities from around the nation, from our CEO, Carolyn Hall, our Mulloon Law Committee and our signature project, the Mulloon Rehydration Initiative.
I hope you enjoy reading this edition of Resilience and our Annual Report. Much thanks for the support of our followers, donors and collaborators – we need you all to help expand our much needed work out across Australia.
Warm regards,
Gary Nairn AO
Chairman