Future Fellowship

Transforming Invasive Plant Management in Northern Australia

Invasive plants are transforming the ecosystems and landscapes of northern Australia. They are proliferating in response to human activities, and are drivers of ecosystem change. As the scale of this problem grows, there is increasing recognition that effective plant management is contingent on an understanding of the people, communities and organisations who are responsible for their management.

The social dimensions of managing invasive plants are not as well understood as their biological and ecological aspects. Effective biosecurity activities hinge on the skills and capacities of local communities, whose lived experiences can offer insights into resilience and adaptive strategies. As northern Australia undergoes significant transformation due to large-scale public and private development projects, understanding how these changes intersect is crucial.

Transforming invasive plant management in northern Australia is the Australian research Council (ARC) Future Fellowship project of Dr Jennifer Atchison. The project aims to investigate how rapid socio-ecological transformation in northern Australia is reconfiguring invasive plant management and evaluate the social and cultural factors that contribute to its effectiveness. Expected outcomes include enhancing Australian environmental management capacity by identifying opportunities for more effective invasive plant management, and more equitable sharing of the benefits it brings.