We wanted to share the highlights from our second corporate immersion where we travelled alongside 14 leaders representing some of Australia’s largest companies to our Coorong Lakes project.
This experience has been developed in partnership with Tasman Environmental Markets (TEM) and is designed for individuals involved in shaping their organisation’s nature and carbon strategies and offers a first-hand understanding of how environmental, financial, and brand goals can align through credible, on-the-ground conservation action.
Attendees included a range of leaders from companies including Dexus, Brambles, Fortescue, Lion, Scape, Australian Land Conservation Alliance , IAG, dsquared, Nature Collective Pty Ltd, as well as the SA Government, who had the chance to explore the Coorong Lakes project which is located in the heart of Meningie, South Australia and encompassing a sprawling 200 hectares.
The Coorong Lakes project is owned and managed by Cassinia Environmental as a conservation reserve in partnership with the Ngarrindjeri people.
Surrounded by land that has been cleared for agriculture, the project aims to ensure the long-term conservation and permanent protection of critical habitats, promote biodiversity monitoring, and collaborate with local First Nations communities and stakeholders to enhance ecological outcomes.
Learn more about the experience and connect with our team to discuss how you can be part of the next cohort and explore some of the highlights below.
The immersion began on-country where we were honoured to have Rita Lindsay and her brother Michael perform a Welcome to Country, as well as sharing insight into the work they’re doing to help ensure Ngarrindjeri culture is passed down through the generations.
Attendees were invited to participate in a smoking ceremony and shown how to step into the smoke and learn more about its role in cleansing of spirits and protection for visitors.
Over the next hour the cohort had the chance to walk the project alongside Rita and Michael, learning more about the cultural aspects of the Coorong Lakes project and dive into questions around the role of totems and the pronunciation in Ngarrindjeri language of different species.
This was a unique opportunity to hear why this work is so important to the community as well as the environment.
Following this introduction, Wilderlands Lead Ecologist Deanna Marshall led the cohort to a number of key monitoring sites and shared details of the conservation work taking place on the property.
Deanna discussed details of the management and monitoring practices taking place as well as setting the context for the next day which would see participants climb to the top of Mount Sandy which provides a unique view of the entire property.
A key take-away for participants was understanding why protecting remnant vegetation is so important as put simply nature it is too complex to recreate and many of the species who call this project home could not be easily replicated due to the intricate relationships between species, soil, and other elements.
This realisation saw many participants becoming increasingly interested in the many tiny species of flora found in the understory of the project, but there was also a motivation to cast their eyes to the sky as well.
To make the experience interactive attendees were challenged to take part in bird monitoring and provided sheets with species and asked to record any birds they observed or heard.
This quickly got competitive.
With over 78 species spread across the property there are plenty of bird sounds to count and the group were fortunate to see a large number of Yellow-tailed Black-cockatoos which are a threatened species in South Australia.
They did, however, quickly realise how challenging it is to identify the species you’re spotting and binoculars became a greatly in-demand asset for the cohort.
After having the chance to see the project through the eyes of an ecologist, the cohort now had the chance to hear what it means to the Ngarrindjeri through the voice of two key elders – Uncle Clyde and Aunty Rose.
Forming a large circle, the cohort heard how a chance encounter between Aunty Rose and Rachel Dettmann, the wife of Wilderlands Co-Founder Paul Dettmann led to a collaboration that would see the Coorong Lakes property purchased alongside a commitment to create a biodiversity protection project and a promise that this land would be handed back to the Traditional Owners in the years to come.
Since that time, Cassinia Environmental (the landholder) and the Ngarrindjeri have worked together to co-design this project, which is now reaching a critical milestone where management and ownership will be transferred to the Ngarrindjeri, ensuring its continued care into the future.
For attendees, this opportunity to hear what caring for country means to this community and learn about the origins of the project provided a special insight.
The next morning, after a quick bite at the local cafe the cohort returned to the property just after 8am, catching a glimpse of sunrise before getting ready for a big adventure.
Led by Wilderlands Ecologist Deanna Marshall the group began the walk to the top of Mount Sandy.
The two hour round trip saw the partcipants make their way through ecosystems ranging from samphire shrublands to mallee woodlands providing the opportunity to observe the native bird diversity with over 78 species recently recorded as well as a rich native plant diversity with over 249 species.
Jordan Lee Bingapore joined the group for the walk sharing his first nations knowledge of the plants that call this property home.
There are over 30 species of orchid, including the largest private land population of the nationally endangered Metallic Sun-orchid (Thelymitra epipactoides) on the planet, and these were on display as the group explored the property.
During this day, there was a particularly memorable moment when Jordan Lee Bingapore and Robert Mrongovius paused the group to demonstrate how the fruit of Ngoor-le (Acrotriche depressa, Native Currant) is collected, and to explain its significance as a traditional food for the Ngarrindjeri people.
Harvesting the berries is no easy task; the shrub’s leaves are tough and sharply pointed, as several participants quickly discovered when they tried to search for fruit, only to withdraw their hands just as quickly. Jordan collects this fruit to propagate new shrubs in the Raukkan nursery.
Overall, the exploration provided the chance to delve deeper into the different monitoring activities taking place on the property and gain a birds-eye view of the total project, revealing the stark contrast to surrounding lands which have been cleared.
Some highlights of the walk included the chance to observe lots of Yellow-tailed Black-cockatoos on the property, a threatened species in South Australia, as well as sighting a pair of Wedge Tailed Eagles flying over the group as they ascended Mount Sandy.
The biggest highlight, however, was simply the chance to do it together with lots of laughs, learnings, and an experience we won’t forget for a very long time.
Having been inspired by seeing the biodiversity protection project first hand it was now time to unpack the barriers for many companies to take action, today.
To help with this discussion we invited Guy Williams to interview Brambles Lachlan Feggans to explore how they’re tackling their nature strategies and invite others to contribute to the discussion around the lasting benefits of integrating nature into decision making.
We were also fortunate to be joined by Tasman Environmental Market’s Rebecca Heard who shared insights on how carbon markets can further support the investment in nature.
It was now time to tackle the challenges facing many leaders when it comes to moving from awareness to action on nature protection.
This was a chance for the cohort to share their own experiences and saw participants take the floor to create what was one of the most impactful sessions of the trip.
Whilst the responses differed the one thing that was present was an acknowledgement that change is coming and needed, and many of these companies will be at the forefront of that shift.
Connect with our team to learn how you can be part of the next immersion experience or ways we can help you protect precious biodiversity as part of your nature strategy today.
