Our Story

Our people have been managing country since our ancestral beings gave us the land, our languages and our culture

Our people have been managing this country since our ancestral beings gave us the land, our languages and our culture. But the world we live in has changed. Our way of life has changed and we have new ways of managing our lands, along with new threats.

We’ve been involved in contemporary land management across the Arafura Swamp catchment area since the 1970s, including working with cattle stations, community organisations and other work programs.

From 2007, the Northern Land Council delivered Working on Country (WOC) contracts through Arafura Swamp area ranger groups. This provided all ranger groups with a source of consistent funding for ongoing operations and paid positions.

We are connected to country. We keep culture and language strong wherever our homelands are. By keeping culture and stories then we can pass it on to children. Not only our story, but healthy country too.

-Bobby Bunungurr

Today, we are operating independently under our own corporation to work with traditional owners and keep our indigenous knowledge strong to make sure it is being used to look after country.

The Arafura Swamp Rangers Aboriginal Corporation comprises five ranger groups that together look after the Arafura Swamp, its catchment and adjacent sea country.

The Ranger Groups

The ranger groups bring together traditional indigenous knowledge and western scientific knowledge to look after country across inland, freshwater and swamp areas.