PICTURE: Deborah Tabart, Australian Koala Foundation CEO and principal author of the Human Plan of Management concept. Credit: Geelong Independent

No Koala’s at Munibung Hill but this approach has a lot going for it
A holistic plan to manage humans is what we need for landscapes like Munibung Hill and beyond. This process needs adopting nationwide.

THE KOALA KISS PROJECT aims to link fragmented Koala habitats and identify strategic and/or regrowth opportunities. With the ultimate vision of creating the ‘Koala Kamino’ – approximately 2,543kms of prime koala habitat from Cairns to Melbourne, that can be created into an uninterrupted conservation corridor by connecting key ‘kiss points’.
     This is possible with the use of the AKF’s scientific, first-of-its-kind Koala Habitat Atlas, which maps the entire geographic habitat of the Koala across 1.5 million square kilometres.
     Rather than a Koala Plan of Management, AKF will demonstrate in the Gwydir Shire how a Human Plan of Management, with Koalas as a flagship can create sustainable communities, despite environmental and human threats.
     I have seen so many Koala Plans of Management, but what we need is a Human Plan of Management – manage human development and we will have Koalas,” Ms Tabart said.
     “It is time for a new way of thinking about Koala conservation and most importantly to not rely on Governments, of all levels, coming and going and changing their laws to allow destruction of Koala habitat.”
     “Given 80% of Australia’s Koalas live on private land, it is up to us; those that own that land to become stewards of the biodiversity that is on our properties.”
     “It is time to write Human Plans of Management that incorporate a holistic approach to each and every landscape with complex and often conflicting priorities.”

MMM … Issue 37, April – May 2023