While others like Tiaro Landcare have become quite clever at raising funds by selling chocolate turtles and running fishing competitions. The Tiaro group use their hard earned funds to protect the endangered Mary River Turtle. However there appear to be very few groups like Tiaro and Noosa can continue in the medium to long term without government funding.

Earlier this year a study by the ANU found “it’s the environment stupid” i.e the environment was the Australian public’s number 1 concern. With this setting, it seems to me the broader public are genuinely concerned about sustainable agriculture and the environment. However how much is there that the average urban resident is prepared to do to assist either of these causes. Perhaps there is room for innovative business models that can raise funds and or other forms of support for Natural Resource Management and Sustainable Agriculture.

Today I was notified of a new person (chiefwala) was following me on Twitter (a neat micro-blogging tool with many uses for NRM). Nice to meet you Rajeev.

So I checked out his site Treewala :: Play. Learn. Save the Planet at www.greenwala.com/treewala/index.php.

The concept is simple play Treewala’s trivia game, get 20 correct answers and the company buys a tree to be planted by the Marion Institute to plant trees as part of the Las Gaviotas project. (links not working at time of posting). Presumably all funding comes from the advertising on the competition page. Rajeev and the team must have done their job well because a) 20 correct answers gets enough traffic to pay for a tree and b) they have Dell sponsored reGeneration onboard as an advertiser, that’s pretty good for starters.

Anyway there is plenty of food for thought for Natural Resource Managers. Is the reforestation appropriate and conducted in a way that creates a nett positive for the environment? We all have assets that we are working with. Which of these assets could capture the public’s attention and potentially wallets? Are there ethical advertisers who you would enter into partnership with in a similar venture in your organisation.

As always I’d love to hear you comments.

If you are not involved in Landcare, Natural Resource Management, or Sustainable Agriculture, would you like your entertainment to provide advertising revenue to green causes such as reforestation? Or would you prefer a direct donation model?

If you are working in Landcare, Natural Resource Management, or Sustainable Agriculture, what are your thoughts can you see yourself working with advertisers to generate income for your onground activites? If so which advertisers would you like to work with?

Tags: Landcare, Treewala, Twitter, NRM, NaturalResourceManagement, SustainableAgriculture

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Modification of river systems for irrigation and urban and industrial use are detrimental to river health we all know that. However this article proposes that climate change, drought and the difficulties the Murray is now facing might be impetus to re-evaluate catchment management.

Read the full article.

The drought we had to have? (ScienceAlert)

Tags: MurrayRiver, ecology, CatchmentCare, WatershedManagement, ClimateChange

Register Now to join researchers, policy makers, scientists, practitioners and landholders to discuss and challenge a range of vegetation management issues.

The conference program includes keynote presentations covering issues such as global, national and local pressures and drivers on vegetation; water’s interface with vegetation; carbon markets; and climate change and adaptation, as well as a broad range of technical and practical speakers.   Hands on Paddock Sessions will offer field-based learning opportunities with local and national vegetation experts; and a series of workshops and forums will provide a snapshot of what is happening in vegetation management across the country.

Trade and sponsorship opportunities are still available but close soon.  For more information visit the conference website or, contact Samantha Morris at Wombat Creative:  sam [at] wombatcreative.com.au or 0421 709 519.

Veg Futures is an initiative of Greening Australia in partnership with Land and Water Australia.

Tags: biodiversity, Greening Australia

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Stock and Land Victoria poses the question “Could carbon trading be the next Landcare?”, suggesting that the opportunities carbon trading presents could be as good for Agriculture as Landcare has been. As the article suggests there are as many opportunities for Agriculture as there are threats. After all the business of agriculture using sunshine, rain and atmospheric carbon to create primary produce.

Of course internationally and historically we have a pretty poor history of looking after our farmers. The farming community wields little political power in comparison to the energy sector (doesn’t stop them having a go sometimes). For the opportunities to be equitable Agriculture will be relying on some sound carbon science and some appropriate extension to make it digestable to the farming community.

There is some interesting work being done by Dr Christine Jones in this regard. Christine Jones will be speaking at the 2008 Qld Landcare Conference in Monto in Septmeber.

Could carbon trading be the next Landcare? - National Rural News - Agribusiness and General - Finance - Stock & Land

Tags: ClimateChange, CarbonTrading, Agriculture, Landcare

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