Become Involved

It's easy, challenging and most of all, it's fun!

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Incorporation for Landcare groups	50Kb
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The most common way for people to get involved in Landcare or Coastcare is by joining an existing group or getting people together with an interest in the environment and forming your own group. Being part of a landcare group has many benefits. It is educational, satisfying, challenging and something the whole family can do together. You get to help in restoring and protecting our natural environment and you also get to meet lots of other dedicated people with similar interests.

What is a Landcare or Coastcare group?

A Landcare or Coastcare group consists of a number of people working together to make a positive contribution to the long-term health of the land. While in the past most groups have had a primary production focus, the number of groups in urban, rural-urban and coastal areas is increasing and landcare is becoming more important to the wider community. Landcare also encompasses coastal and inland waterways through Coastcare and Waterwatch.

There are over 4500 groups throughout Australia, with the Territory having over 80 covering most of its area. Membership of NT groups include a high percentage of primary producers and Aboriginal groups.

The great advantage of landcare groups lies in the power and will to deal constructively with land degradation problems which may seem too big for individuals. In dealing with local issues, a group is often motivated by interest, cooperation and ownership. That is, getting out there and doing something! Within a group there usually lies an impressive collection of skills and resources amongst its members to get the job done, or at least to be able to find out how best to get the resources to do it.

How do you start a Landcare or Coastcare group?

Landcare groups often start up when one or more people have a concern over a local land management issue and feel motivated to do something about it. A small nucleus group or steering committee then focus on the local issues and gauge the degree of interest and concern among the wider community. They may also consider the resources required to address these issues in addition to those which are locally available.

An inaugural meeting is then called to launch the group, recruit interested people, decide on a name, determine the area boundaries and elect a committee.

A number of activities to sustain the initial enthusiasm could include:

field days;
walks through the area;
inviting guests to meetings; and
visits to other landcare groups.

As the group develops, other activities become important. The nature of these will of course depend on the issues which you face, the size of your group, type of area which your group covers and your current resources, but could include:

establishing field demonstrations on soil conservation methods;
trialing weed control methods;
compiling maps and other information on your area's land resources;
Tree planting days;
weed eradication; and
general working bees.

As an organisation with the capacity to secure funding and grants consideration must be given to issues such as incorporation, insurance and taxation. There is a range of assistance available on these and other issues through various government and non-government organisations. Groups are encouraged to discuss their needs with Landcare extension officers or regional facilitators and members of other established landcare groups.

Landcare group support

Groups are able to gain assistance through a variety of organisations both community and government. Government agencies such as Natural Resources, Environment and the Arts can assist with technical advice on a range of issues. Landcare support is also available within each region of the Northern Territory to assist with the formation of groups and to help existing groups in all aspects of land management.

Groups may also access assistance to carry out works through the Conservation Volunteers Australia and Green Corps. These organisations offer teams of people to help groups with on-ground activities. Other organisations such as Greening Australia can also help with technical advice and training with regard to vegetation restoration and management.

“Landcare encourages wide community participation in land and water management issues and fosters an ethic of sustainable land use while maintaining options for future generations.”