This public event that brought together First Nations leaders in restoration from around the world to share their knowledge, experiences and leadership in caring for Country, lands, waters and ecosystems. This event offered an opportunity to hear directly from those leading restoration efforts grounded in cultural knowledge, responsibility and self-determination, and to engage with perspectives that are reshaping how environmental care is understood and practiced.
Across diverse regions, First Nations communities are responding to environmental change in ways that are deeply connected to place. This event explored these approaches through a series of conversations that highlighted both successes and ongoing challenges. Speakers reflected on what has worked, what has not, and why, offering honest insights into the realities of restoration work on the ground. The discussion moved beyond technical solutions to consider the cultural, social and governance dimensions that underpin long-term care for ecosystems.
A central focus of the event was the power of knowledge exchange. Rather than promoting a single model, it recognised the importance of locally grounded practices and the need to support approaches led by community priorities.
By bringing together voices from across the globe, the event aimed to strengthen connections and build an international network of mutual support. It created space for collaboration, shared learning and ongoing dialogue, contributing to a growing movement that centres First Nations leadership in environmental restoration.
Professor Kura Paul-Burke is a pioneering Māori marine restoration ecologist. Her intergenerational, quantitative research methods deliberately prioritise Māori environmental wisdom and practices with marine science to restore degraded mahinga kai-moana (marine food systems). The ground-breaking success of her work is re-shaping marine science research and restoration for Māori, Science, Government entities and most importantly, our collective moana and mokopuna (grandchildren) of tomorrow.
A̱lag̱a̱mił - Nicole Norris is a Coast Salish leader from Halalt First Nation on Vancouver Island, British Columbia. She is a recognized Indigenous leader in the Pacific region and an aquaculture specialist with over 30 years of experience working with First Nations and the federal government along the West Coast of British Columbia. Nicole currently serves as the Indigenous Planning Officer for the Ministry of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness, where she supports and engages with 202 First Nation communities.
Manoa is an iTaukei (Indigenous) Fijian from Naidiri village on the south-west coast of Fiji’s main island, Viti Levu. In 2009, he co-founded Naidiri’s tabu (Marine Protected Area) in response to disappearing coral reefs and declining fish stocks within the community’s traditional fishing grounds. Since then, Manoa has led the youth and wider community in reef regeneration through coral planting efforts, contributing to the area’s recognition as Naidiri Marine Biodiversity Park by Fiji’s Ministry of Environment and Climate Change in 2022. Over the past two years, the community has also developed an eco-tourism venture in the village. Manoa and the youth of Naidiri have visited several villages and schools to raise awareness about ocean conservation, guided by Indigenous knowledge and the traditional values of caring for Vanua.
Mitchell Gibbs is a proud Dunghutti man through kinship, and Lecturer, Postdoctoral and Fulbright Fellow at The University of Sydney in the Schools of Geosciences. From Indigenous Traditional Owners and knowledge holders, he learns about our environments and ways to manage those environments using shellfish-associated practices handed down through oral and lived histories and putting this into practice with habitat restoration work with the Gamay Rangers and the La Perouse Local Aboriginal Land Council.
