Implementing the Aboriginal Waterways Assessment tool: collaborations to engage and empower First Nations in waterway management

Abstract

ABSTRACTAboriginal representative organisations collaborated with the Murray Darling Basin Authority to develop the Aboriginal Waterways Assessment (AWA) tool. We consider the AWA as part of an evolving toolkit of methodologies designed to elevate First Nations’ objectives in water planning, in the context of national water reform and implementation of the Murray Darling Basin Plan. We describe the adaptation of the AWA from an approach developed in Aotearoa/New Zealand, the Maori Cultural Health Index for Streams and Waterways. We review the delivery and outcomes of seven AWA projects undertaken in Victoria between 2017 and 2018, demonstrating that the AWA is an effective and culturally safe mechanism for First Nations to document water-related values and influence waterway management. The article identifies improvements in water management resulting from the use of data generated through AWA projects, as well as project outcomes at the individual and broader political scale, including the social benefits of First Nations’ data collection and the importance of data sovereignty. We highlight the value of waterway assessments undertaken by First Nations as a tool to address their widespread exclusion from water planning and management.