Aboriginal Inhabitants: Surrounding The Great Barrier Reef

Describe and explain Australian Indigenous people’s historical and contemporary connections to land and sea and the resources derived from them. How have settler discourses associated with colonization affected these connections to country?

Australia is in debt to The Great Barrier Reef as it has brought economic and environmental stability not just to Australia, but the World, from a business and ethical standpoint everyone must put an end in this growing issue.

Human use and tourism is one of the main reasons the Great Barrier Reef is such an astounding place. The reef consists of more than 400 different kinds of corals, over 1,500 species of fish, and over 200 types of birds (2011). The tourism industry is a major contributor to the local and Australian economy. The range of activities for tourists include day tours, overnight and extended tours, snorkeling, scuba diving, fishing, whale watching, helicopter tours, and other services that capitalizes on the world’s fascination with it. (2011). The earliest occurance of tourism was in the late 1890’s, when this area became a

Because the GBR is such a highly visited tourist attraction for snorkeling and diving, there has been a large number of human structures that have been built in natural areas. Every five years, the Australian government publishes an Outlook Report that examines the Great Barrier Reef’s health, pressures, and likely future. “The report is required under Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Act 1975 (section 54) and aims to provide a regular and reliable means of assessing reef health and management in an accountable and transparent way.” The report shows the actions that have been taken since 2009, including the focus on improving the quality of water that runs off the land. The increased freshwater run-off is in direct relation to the coastal development that has occurred since the major bleaching events have begun. The report released in 2009, states that the greatest risks to the Reef are still climate change, land-based runoff, coastal development, and some remaining impacts of fishing and illegal fishing and poaching. The report points out climate change as being the main cause of the destruction or bleaching of the reef (Department of Environment and Energy 2017). Most observers conclude that the climate change is a direct result of human

The Great Barrier Reef is under threat due to many human impacts and natural impacts. These impacts lead to other consequences that may harm our society as well. For example, if the Great Barrier Reef was to be damaged by pollution, tourism levels would decrease, which can lead to a drop in the economic stance of Australia. For these reasons, it is important to keep our ecosystems safe and protected. Some of the human impacts towards the Great Barrier Reef include:

The Great Barrier Reef is the world’s largest coral reef system. It is located in Queensland and stretches 2,300 km along the coast, covering 348,000 km2. The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority was established in 1975 in order to sustainably manage the natural heritage for future generations.

Consequently, there are two important factors that contribute to the ignorance of the Great Barrier Reef ‘s impacts. First, Mr. Hunt’s

While government officials looked the other way, half of the coral has disappeared from along the length of the Great Barrier Reef. Additionally, vast areas of the reef’s coral have suffered serious degradation. It isn’t surprising that the area’s unique level of biodiversity is being threatened by the damage as well.

The Great Barrier Reef is the largest reef In the world being at 345, 000 square kilometres in size. This huge amount of reef is home to 1,500 species of fish, 30 species of whales and dolphins, and 133 species of sharks and rays (Act.greenpeace.org, 2018). Imagine you were one of these fish and your home was just dying off leaving you without food and having to move to different areas. We are the ones causing The Great Barrier Reef to die! Not only does the reef provide homes and food for all of these animals but it also provides the ocean and earth with large amounts of oxygen.

Indigenous Australian and Torres Strait Island cultures have the oldest living history in the world. They trace back at least 50,000 years and some argue closer to 65,000 years. Events, policies and attitudes of the past have impacted this rich and diverse culture. Through progressive movements and other agencies of social, cultural and political change, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders have been inspired by hope for change to respond to challenges in ways that promote wellbeing, with varying degrees of success.

The governments new reef plan with help preserve the Great Barrier reefs species and wildlife.

The environment and culture are important to the Aboriginal people in Australia, which is illustrated through the Kakadu National Park (Australian Government Parks Australia, 2016).

to refer to the Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander An Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander is someone who identifies themselves as being Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander, they can also be accepted within an Aboriginal abd/or Torres Strait Islander community.

Five hundred words gives very limited opportunity to delve into the complex world of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander communities. I will be as broad as possible and I have not referenced any websites or books. This is sourced from my general knowledge and experiences and from speaking with people who are more familiar with the Aboriginal culture than me over the years.

The findings and information I give through-out my Inquiry assessment will be validated by reliable Academic resources. The issue of sustaining the Great Barrier Reef is of upmost importance to the Australian government as well as international and national organisations. Majority of my resources will be internet sources, such as Government legislations and documents. Case studies involving multiple organisations such as Project Catalyst will be useful material for statistics and comparing the damage to the reef caused by farming and agriculture. In addition to these main resources I will also use; journal articles, books, Documentaries/ Interviews and various search engines such as Google Scholar and Curtin University technology Library.