22nd Biennial Conference of the Australian Rangeland Society
Broome WA – 18-22 September 2023
Coming soon!
Preparations for the 22nd Biennial Conference of the Australian Rangeland Society are progressing well.
Approximately 110 abstracts have been accepted; comprising 9 keynote presentations, 68 15-minute oral presentations, 24 five minute oral presentation and 17 posters (some are combined poster/five-minute presentations). About 140 people are registered to attend, and we hope that number will reach 200 by the start of the conference.
After each morning’s keynote presentations there will be two concurrent sessions, where delegates can choose which session to participate.
Conference details can be found at https://aapevents.eventsair.com/ars2023/
Conference sponsorship – it is important!
Organising a national conference in a regional location has many challenges and the Conference Organising Committee is very grateful for the support received from businesses/organisations listed below.
| Early Career Sponsor | CSIRO |
| Silver Sponsor | Harvest Road |
| Grants | Lotterywest |
| Broome Shire Council | |
| Business Events Perth | |
| Bronze/session sponsors | Drought Hub |
| Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries | |
| Northern Australia Climate Program | |
| Envu Australia | |
| Cibo Labs | |
| Supporter | Meat and Livestock Australia |
| Trade Stand | Got a bug |
| Rangelands NRM | |
| Resource Consulting Services |
A focus on youth in the rangelands
The formal conference program has an overall focus on youth – as in supporting and encouraging a new generation of rangeland scientists and managers. As such two of the formal sessions are termed Passing the Baton with some great presentations. Early career people working in the rangelands can apply for a concessional rate of registration – please have a look at https://aapevents.eventsair.com/ars2023/registration
The field trips – Monday 18 September 2023
The conference commences with three field trips, followed by a welcome ceremony at the Broome Fishing Club. Those attending the conference will be invited soon to attend one of the field trips, which are outlined below. The key features of the field trips are ….
Dampier Peninsula and Indigenous Rangers Tour
The tour will go north from Broome into the Dampier Peninsula with its fire-prone pindan vegetation.
The tour will cover the importance of cross-tenure collaboration between Indigenous Rangers, pastoralists and agencies to protect lives, livelihoods and biodiversity from destructive wildfires. Tour participants will engage with the Bardi Jawi and Nyul Rangers about the role of Indigenous Rangers in management and conservation of the natural environment through cultural burning.
The tour will visit Monsoon vine thickets (MVTs) which are culturally significant for Traditional Owners and are recognised as a Threatened Ecological Community (TEC) protected under the EPBC Act.
Roebuck Plains Station Tour
Roebuck Plains Station is located at Gumaranganyjal, near Broome. The station covers over 276,000 hectares, and includes the Roebuck Export Depot. The area is also overlapped by the Yawuru Indigenous Protected Area (IPA). The station operations were transferred the Yawuru in 2014, recognising Yawuru’s traditional ownership of the area.
The full-day tour will include presentations from internationally renowned regenerative rancher, Alejandro Carrillo, and the latest advancements in agriculture, understand climatic factors affecting flooding, and discover how Yawuru Traditional Owners are managing wetlands on a commercial cattle station. The tour includes a visit to DPIRD’s Skuthorpe research pivot at Roebuck Plains Station. At Roebuck Plains, the discussions will consider how various Ag-technology can be applied to improve climate resilience in the rangelands. Finally, participants will learn how young Yawuru people are being trained to participate in the pastoral industry.
Around Broome Tourist Tour
Broome is a ‘tourism magnet’ and this tour will take in several of the attractions within the town area, including a gin distillery tour and a renowned pearl farm. Tour participants will also learn about the rich multi-cultural history of Broome, in particular the Japanese heritage from the early days of the pearling industry.
And now – onto the formal Draft Program which is shown below ….
A PDF copy of the program can be found here.
The Conference Dinner – Thursday evening 21 September, at the Broome Surf Lifesaving Club
And … to finish off a great few days in Broome and at the Conference, the Conference Dinner will be held on the Thursday evening. It is a great seaside venue …
Do you need to know more?
If you have any questions regarding the Broome conference, please get in contact with us:
- Sponsorship and Exhibition – Rosie Peace 0410 518 884
- Ticketing, registration and abstracts- Sita Carolina 0433 606 177
- Conference Committee – Don Burnside 0427 357 952
- Conference Committee – Matthew Fletcher 0428 637 710
Thanks and not long now until the Broome Rangelands Conference! We look forward to seeing you there.
From the Broome 2023 Conference Organising Committee