NAIDOC 2025: OzFish launches Fish Dreaming program
This NAIDOC week, Australia’s fish habitat charity OzFish launches Fish Dreaming, a national program that aims to elevate First Nations knowledge, and to lead with contemporary science to best support the restoration of culturally important fishing places and healthier water systems.
OzFish CEO Cassie Price said, “At OzFish, we recognise that many Indigenous Australians have a deep understanding of, and connection to, the rivers, creeks, wetlands, floodplains and coastlines of this country.”
“We hold a deep respect for First Nations traditional knowledge, wisdom, and perspectives passed from generation to generation, and successfully applied to sustainable environmental management for thousands of years.”
OzFish, who currently work with more than 24 Indigenous groups across each territory and state of Australia, aim to expand its partnerships with First Nations groups and organisations to work together to improve local waterways.
“Working with First Nations groups, Fish Dreaming aims to restore a range of places, vegetation and native fish important to indigenous fishers, and to support traditional fishing practices,” said Ms Price.
These practices can include fish traps, songlines, meeting places, yarning circles, middens, waterway-related artwork, celebrations, stories, and re-establishing vegetation that can provide traditional woven fish basket materials.”
OzFish Director and Minyungbal mibbiny from the Yugambeh Nation of Northern New South Wales and South-East Queensland Rachael Cavanagh said, “Our waterways are the veins of Country, they are the lifeforce that feeds our environment. Our waters are sacred.”
“In collaboration with First Nations communities, Ozfish has created a program that enables First Nations leadership through ecosystems management of water. Programs that educate recreational fishers about the traditional knowledge for a shared outcome for caring for Country, caring for water, caring for our communities, for a sustainable future for all our grandchildren to enjoy.”
OzFish is committed to ensuring restoration work is underpinned by a range of research-based science.
Ms Price said, “We recognise that greater habitat impact and value can be created, and new insights gained in our collaborative work, with the combined capacity and capability of this country’s original fishers, fish habitat scientists and environmental stewards.”
Over the next five years, Fish Dreaming aims to:
- Recruit Aboriginal Indigenous-identified candidates for staff positions, including more River Culture Officers for major OzFish projects, and a Fish Dreaming Program Manager.
- Launch its OzFish Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP)
- In consultation with local Indigenous communities, identify and restore culturally significant fish habitat locations and associated vegetation and/or native fish species each year, incorporating traditional practices, where appropriate.
OzFish encourages First Nations groups interested in restoring their local waterways and other organisations interested in partnering on this program, to contact [email protected].
Current OzFish Fish Dreaming projects and works can be found here.
National NAIDOC Week celebrations are held across Australia in the first week of July, to celebrate and recognise the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.