Roo Roundup

December 2023
Edition #5

In this final (for now!) edition:

• Project webinar

• Kangaroo delights at the Quorn Kurti Festival

• A Kangaroo Conversation continues into 2024

• New factsheet resource

• Landscape Priorities Fund application

• Other news: CoP update, webpage update, media

Project webinar showcases outputs, wins and challenges

We were excited to host the KPP Grant Program recipients, KPP Project Partners and numerous interested stakeholders for the Kangaroo Partnership Project Webinar on Monday 4th December 2023. It was a successful showcase of the achievements and challenges of the grant program projects, and an enlightening insight to the path that lies ahead for the KPP.

Kickstarting the webinar was an engaging presentation on the SA Arid Rangelands Kangaroo Collective Pilot by South Gap Station land manager Kate Greenfield. Kate provided a comprehensive overview of the project, highlighting both successes and challenges encountered during its implementation. It offered a unique opportunity to delve into the heart of what land owners working collectively can achieve for landscape scale kangaroo management, exploring the impact it has had on the local properties, harvesters and businesses that were involved. A summary document is in development to share the learnings further.

Professor George Wilson then took the virtual stage to share the research uncovered by the Australian Wildlife Services around Increasing kangaroo value through improved quality, product diversity and consistency. The report has increased awareness on the opportunities for enhancing the kangaroo industry and what roadblocks need to be overcome to get there, with some key insights into potential innovations the industry can embrace to improve product diversity, customer awareness and demand.

Closing the series of presentations was Madeline McShane from the Nature Conservation Society of SA, who led a compelling overview of their project A Kangaroo Conversation. This social awareness campaign aims to shed light on the various aspects of kangaroo management and its crucial role in conservation via social media platforms Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Tiktok. Madeline shared the campaign’s findings so far, highlighting the importance of community engagement and targeted education to improving public perception and social licence, and the opportunity to reach a new and increased audience through the use of social media platforms.

Participants were then involved in a Q&A session and given an update on the future directions of the Kangaroo Partnership Project. As we look forward, we encourage collaboration, innovative ideas, and a continued commitment to the success of this project.

Kangaroo delights take the spotlight at Quorn Kurti Festival

In a celebration of sustainable, organic and indigenous food options, the Quorn Kurti Festival proudly featured an array of kangaroo products in October.

The festival showcased an assortment of indigenous food choices, ranging from pepperberry and barramundi to wattleseed and of course the famous kurti, otherwise known as quandong. Attendees at the bush food garden sessions were in for a special treat with kangaroo cooked up by the local Landcare group with the generous assistance of lcoal Nukunu Community members in preparing, cooking and demonstrating the many various ways the nutritious and tasty protein can be enjoyed.

Delicious Kangaroo shaslicks, yiros, burgers, and sausages took centre stage, complemented by a tantalising roo tail stew. The culinary selection aimed to highlight the appeal of locally-processed and lean protein options to the community.

The Kangaroo Partnership Program donated 98kg of kangaroo products from Port Augusta’s Crossroad Meats for a local fundraiser on the Saturday night of the festival, and a BBQ on the Sunday.

This initiative was inspired by the funded Kangaroo Management Collective Pilot, a project which united Gawler Ranges land managers in a collaborative effort to enhance kangaroo population management on a landscape scale. The collective project addressed a declining interest in kangaroo meat consumption by offering subsidies for kangaroo meat harvested from their properties to local enterprises, including Carrapateena Mine catering and the Bungala Food Service. As a result, both organisations trialled kangaroo meat on their menus and are exploring opportunities to continue beyond 2023.

To experience the festival's vibrancy, catch a glimpse on the A Kangaroo Conversation profiles linked in the post below.

A Kangaroo Conversation continues into 2024 - so hop on it!

The Nature Conservation Society of South Australia’s Kangaroo Management Awareness Raising project, aimed to increase community awareness of kangaroo management, is continuing until the end of January 2024, and we encourage you to jump online and check it out. The posts will continue to be available after this time, so you will maintain access to all the broad and engaging materials as a self-reference point and for content-sharing purposes.

You can check out the campaign through the following platform links:

If you would like to be involved or add input to the campaign, reach out to Madeline McShane (madeline.mcshane@ncssa.asn.au)

Landscape Priorities Fund application for the next iteration of the KPP

In November, a submission was made for Round 4 of the Landscape Priorities Fund to support a phase two iteration of the Kangaroo Partnership Project. This follows the completion of the current project at the end of this year.

The new application proposes a 3 year long project from the Landscape Priorities Fund, with additional funding contributions and in-kind support from Landscape Boards and the SA Drought Hub bringing the total proposed project value to over $1 million.

The application proposes to expand the project beyond the rangelands, involving all Landscape Boards in some capacity to improve alignment across the state and across different landscape types. The project will also support some in-house capacity within some Landscape Boards to ensure on-ground and project support across the regions.

First Nations voices will be prioritised at the beginning of the project through a Yarning Circle, which will guide project development. Additional funding is also allocated to support ideas and projects that emerge from the Yarning Circle.

The project priorities have been refined from the current iteration to focus on:

• Supporting land managers to manage kangaroos on a landscape scale
• Facilitating learning and knowledge sharing between stakeholders
• Funding tangible projects including on-ground trials and First Nations led projects
• Improving social licence for kangaroo management, including harvesting
• Providing expertise and guidance to industry-focused projects

Over 16 organisations and individuals provided letters of support to the application, including committing to funding contributions and in-kind support. All Landscape Boards across the state (except Kangaroo Island) provided letters of support, demonstrating the strength of the partnerships forged during the past two years.

In addition, the project will continue to work closely with PIRSA on aligning with the priorities of the Agriculture Kangaroo Taskforce, and remain in close strategic partnership with DEW’s Kangaroo Management Reference Group. A new formal alliance with the SA Drought Resilience Adoption and Innovation Hub’s (SA Drought Hub) will aim to enhance drought resilience in South Australia’s agricultural sector, the agricultural landscape and communities, and fund tangible innovative projects.

We note that while not all partners were requested to provide a letter of support for the application, we welcome the continued participation of all current partners and new additions moving forward. These partnerships transcend funding cycles as we look to secure a self-sustaining governance structure equipped to tackle the issues associated with kangaroo overabundance. 

We are hopeful to continue to build on the significant ground gained over the past two and a half years, and will know the outcome of the project bid early in 2024. 

Upon confirmation of the funding bid outcome we will confirm the project structure including that of the steering committee and the broader partnership. Please reach out to coordinator@sakangaroopartnership.com if you are interested or have any questions about how this involvement could look for you. Alternatively you are welcome to do so via our feedback form linked below.

That’s a wrap on the KPP, for now… (hopefully!)

We would like to take this opportunity to express our gratitude to everyone for your interest, engagement, and contributions during the Kangaroo Partnership Project. As a partnership, we have achieved significant milestones, exploring and trialling shared solutions to address the substantial threat posed by unsustainably high kangaroo populations to the environment. 

Ultimately, this endeavor aims to bolster the landscape and economic resilience of communities in South Australia. Although the project's future is uncertain, we believe we are well-positioned to face the future with a renewed vision for collaborative effort and improvement.

We hope that through your involvement you have come away with a broader and more in-depth knowledge around the complexities surrounding the management of kangaroos, and built up a support network and resource base that enables you to know where to go for further information that you need when it comes to making decisions.

The subscriber list for this project newsletter will be maintained by SAAL for use in the next iteration or similar projects. In the meantime, you can keep informed on the progress of the project application via the SAAL website, or via the coordinator@sakangaroopartnership.com email which will be monitored by SAAL in coming months.

Have a safe and wonderful holiday season and hope to see you all again in 2024!

Emily and Georgie