Roo Roundup

September 2023
Edition #4

In this edition:

• Project updates

• What's next?

• Other news: interim coordinator contact, CoP update, media

Project updates

The three project teams presented final updates during a KPP committee strategy workshop in early June. All three of the funded projects identified key learnings, challenges and opportunities for future work, including expansions to their projects, as well as new innovative ideas to explore and test in the future.

Following discussions at the committee workshop, we have extended some projects until the end of the year to make the most of current opportunities. We expect these projects will continue to lay the groundwork for more effective kangaroo management for environmental, agricultural and social outcomes over the next few months and beyond.

Kangaroo Management Collective Pilot

This project has successfully brought land managers together to manage kangaroo populations collectively across the landscape within the Gawler Ranges region.

Through the project, land managers experimented with distributing harvesting tags strategically across their properties based on landscape needs to attract harvesters to these properties. The success of this approach varied across the properties, as a consistent challenge was the limited demand for kangaroo products discouraging harvesters.

To address this, a portion of the project funds was diverted to subsidise locally harvested kangaroo meat, with the aim to increase local interest and consumption. This initiative had the bonus of benefiting local businesses and community organisations, including the Bungala Food Service, and providing them with a local, nutritious, and budget-friendly protein source.

The Collective project will continue to be supported by the coordinator to meet together for another workshop, and participate in additional knowledge sharing opportunities. The Collective group hopes to become a self-sustaining network that will continue on beyond the life of the KPP, and inspire similar groups to form in other regions.

This project has inspired the KPP to support a supply of local kangaroo meat to fundraisers at the Quorn Kurti Festival in October. If you are interested in attending the festival and being involved please contact the coordinator (coordinator@sakangaroopartnership.com).

Kangaroo management awareness raising

This project, led by the Nature Conservation Society of South Australia, aims to increase community awareness of kangaroo management. The campaign - A Kangaroo Conversation - continues to have an impressive, engaged audience and has been extended until the end of the year. The campaign can be found on the following platforms:

• Website: https://akangarooconversat.wixsite.com/rooconvo
• Instagram: @akangarooconversation
• Facebook: Kangaroo Conversation
• TikTok: @akangarooconversation
• Twitter: @rooconvo

The campaign hopes to expand its community outreach and create versatile content which can be used across diverse media platforms. The team is looking to further their outreach by extending the awareness campaign to different mediums such as written journalistic pieces, television broadcasts, and in-person events.

A Kangaroo Conversation is always eager to hear from people who have a story to tell about kangaroo management, or people who might be interested in contributing to the media content. If you, or someone you know, is interested in giving input or contributing to the campaign, feel free to reach out to Madeline McShane (madeline.mcshane@ncssa.asn.au).

Increasing kangaroo value through improved quality, product diversity, and consistency

This project by Australian Wildlife Services worked on pathways to increase kangaroo value through improved quality, product diversity, and consistency. The team found that high-value kangaroo products depend on better quality and more accurate product description branding and product diversity. Reliability of supply was identified as a key issue to sustaining higher prices. The report also explored opportunities for credits from soil carbon sequestration plus potential carbon credit from a low emission meat, and potential credits for stewardship and improved biodiversity.

You can access the full project report here.

We are currently scoping a workshop in Port Augusta for the team to share and discuss findings with key stakeholders (e.g. land managers, harvesters) and discuss the next steps to improving kangaroo value. If you are interested in participating in this workshop please contact the coordinator.

What's next?

The KPP committee met for a strategy workshop in June to discuss KPP priorities for the next 6 months and beyond. For the first morning, the committee were joined by the funded project teams and representatives from the Department for Environment and Water and the PIRSA Agricultural Kangaroo Taskforce.

The group discussed challenges and opportunities for kangaroo management identified through the funded projects, and resulting priorities for kangaroo management both in South Australia and beyond including:

1. National coordination and leadership
2. Land manager support and community engagement
3. On-ground innovative projects and research
4. Industry development

These priorities are discussed in more detail in the final project report, which was finalised in August. You can access the final project report here and the Executive Summary here.

The report also presents considerations for future iterations of the KPP, including expanding the project to all regional South Australian Landscape Boards, extending the duration of the project, and focusing on management priorities best addressed by the strengths of the KPP model and network, including:

1. Supporting land managers to manage kangaroos on their properties and at a broad landscape scale
2. Facilitating learning and knowledge sharing opportunities between NRM organisations on a state and national level and working with relevant government departments and relevant stakeholders to support alignment and collaboration
3. Coordinating opportunities for community education and increased awareness and understanding of kangaroo management
4. Providing support for on-ground and future facing projects that explore and trial pathways to improve kangaroo management
5. Providing expertise and guidance to projects that have clear implications for kangaroo management but do not have an explicit and direct land management focus, e.g., industry development projects

Coming soon

Planning is in progress for a webinar in late October, where both the KPP coordinator and funded project teams will give final presentations, including a  Q&A. This webinar will be open to all.

We plan to follow the webinar with a workshop for project partners in November, to inform pitch development for the next iteration of the KPP, based on the priorities listed above. If you are interested in supporting the delivery of this workshop, please contact the coordinator (coordinator@sakangaroopartnership.com).