The Watsonville Aboriginal Corporation manages the affairs of our clan group of the Mbabaram people and traditional lands. Like many other Indigenous people, we have been displaced from our Country, but in more recent times have had our rights and interests in Country increasingly recognised through Native Title determinations across our traditional lands.

Our activities include cultural heritage research and management, use of Indigenous fire regimes to restore and protect biodiversity, development of bushfoods and horticulture, and promotion of inter-generational learning. The bushfood project has five main activities: (1) identifying plants from our Country for bushfoods and horticulture, (2) testing plants for food quality, (3) developing propagation and production systems, (4) intergenerational learning and training, and (5) advancing commercialisation and protection of our native plants.

In the first step, we identified plants that are special to our Indigenous Biocultural Knowledge (IBK), including rare species that are threatened with extinction. After testing identified plants for food quality, we are now developing food and beverage products while considering production and supply chains.

We have designed and established infrastructure on Country including (1) raised horticulture beds to test intensive production, (2) a large shade house to propagate plants from seeds and cuttings, and (3) a bushfood garden to experiment with local soil, organic fertiliser and irrigation and to scale up production. These facilities are complemented by office and accommodation spaces to live on Country and run cultural activities and workshops.

Our aim is to protect and restore our traditional lands, develop and protect our plants, and contribute to Indigenous-led bushfood and horticulture industries. Here we present our learnings and journey.