Round 2 Partnerships Against Pests projects

Building capacity against complacency

Bass Coast Landcare Network

This project will increase awareness of weeds and pest animals with new residents and disengaged landowners through workshops, a calendar, new resident packs, roadside signs, and community meetings. The group will convene quarterly stakeholder meetings to coordinate control efforts. The project will focus on weed species of greatest community concern, rabbits, and foxes. The group have collaborated with Bass Coast Shire Council, Bunurong Land Council, Parks Victoria, and Phillip Island Nature Parks.

$38,200

Building capacity for private landholders’ aspirations and practices for a pest-controlled, healthy Bellarine Peninsula

Bellarine Landcare Group Inc

This project continues the work of the ‘Rabbit Sweep’ program, which aims to identify opportunities to engage with disengaged landowners. The project will engage a facilitator to hold a series of presentations, training events, and workshops on rabbit control. The group will contribute to newsletters, produce brochures, and facilitate regular meetings with local Rabbit Action Group. They will also create a ‘Rabbit Library’ designed to make existing rabbit control resources easier to search and access. The group have collaborated with Bellarine Bayside Foreshore Committee of Management, City of Greater Geelong, Victorian Rabbit Action Network and Wadawurrung Traditional Owners.

$30,800

Project Shingleback: managing invasive pests and weeds under the ‘Landcare New Futures’ Windharp Horizons program

Buloke & Northern Grampians Landcare Network

The project will partner with a range of stakeholders to increase awareness about weeds and pests in the district. This includes engaging year 9 students across four schools and mapping the extent of specific species using online tools. The group will develop management plans and deliver a series of educational community displays, forums, workshops, and publications. This project is a subcomponent of the Windharp Horizons Program and will benefit from its extensive list of collaborators.

$37,500

'Buckrabanyule' – a story of country, cactus and combating invasives

Bush Heritage Australia/ Djandak

Bush Heritage Australia will partner with DJANDAK to deliver on Country field days for the public and for Dja Dja Wurrung peoples to share the story of wheel cactus control and country healing at Buckrabanyule. The project will produce a video focussed on sharing knowledge, designed to attract future investment in wheel cactus control in the region. The video will include results from trials using a range of innovative wheel cactus control methods to build the capability of land managers in managing wheel cactus.

$30,000

Activating community to control pests in the Mount Alexander region

Connecting Country

The project will run several field days alongside a seasonal communications campaign to build awareness of weeds and pest animals in the community. This includes hosting weed identification and control field days, a rabbit control field day with the Victorian Rabbit Action Network, monthly blogs, social media, articles and radio spots. The group will attend market stalls, develop a weed control technique video and deliver a cultural awareness and Country plan information session in partnership with Dja Dja Wurrung Clans Aboriginal Corporation.

$43,076

Pest-busting strength through community connection in the Heytesbury

Heytesbury District Landcare Network

This project will deliver ‘Weed Busters’ events with focus on the barriers to weed control and building community capacity to support on ground action. The group will also deliver weed and pest education activities to the local P-12 school. Landcare network staff will be trained in video editing and produce a series of six case study videos involving local community members. The project is targeting blackberry, ragwort and rabbits which are the species of most concern to the local community. The group is collaborating with multiple schools, several historical societies, the Victorian Blackberry Taskforce and Vic Roads.

$30,700

2024 Latrobe Integrated Priority Pest Plant and Animal Initiative

Latrobe Catchment Landcare Network

This project will deliver a one-day stakeholder forum to address gaps in regional weed and pest animal information and help codesign a weed and pest management strategy. Information collected at the forum will be used to develop a region-wide pest management strategy. The project is supported by Baw Baw Shire Council and LaTrobe City Council, as well as TAFE Gippsland and the Department of Transport and Planning.

$34,320

Holistic pest management of the Mitta 2 Murray Region

Mitta 2 Murray Landcare

This project will provide opportunities for people to gather, learn and share information about weed and pest animal management. This includes the delivery of events at several locations over the network, including:

• A   stakeholder forum to promote   collaboration with Parks Victoria and the North-East Catchment Management   Authority.
• Training/field days with the Victorian Rabbit Action Network and the   Victorian Blackberry   Taskforce.
• knowledge   sharing on Country with Duduroa Dhargal   Aboriginal Corporation.

$28,705

Creative campaigning for Moorabool’s top 3 weeds: gorse, blackberry and serrated tussock

Moorabool Catchment Landcare Group

This project will deliver extension, education and mapping activities. These will include mail outs, articles for print and social media, seminars with guest speakers, and hands-on weed identification workshops. The Victorian Blackberry Taskforce, Victorian Gorse Taskforce and Victorian Serrated Tussock Working Party will assist in this delivery of information. Videos will be created as an enduring educational resource. The project will also deliver a community wide mapping project to record weed infestations to inform a strategic approach to future control works.

$24,759.50

Partnering to tackle pests on the Peninsula: a Landcare approach

Mornington Peninsula Landcare Network

The project will increase support and raise awareness about weeds and pest animals through several engagement and education activities, including training to build skills of Landcare leaders and upgrading digital and printed educational materials. A series of community workshops will focus on best practice management with an aim to facilitate co-ordinated control across land tenures. The group has partnerships with the Mornington Peninsular Shire to erect dynamic road signage.

$38,540

Port Campbell rabbit control training workshops/video

Port Campbell Progress Group

This project will continue the community’s rabbit control journey by equipping private landholders and public land managers with rabbit control knowledge, skills and confidence, specific to their situation. The project will engage with the Victorian Rabbit Action Network for rabbit management workshops tailored to land size. The project will be documented via video to provide an enduring educational product. Project partners include Parks Victoria, Corangamite Shire and Great Ocean Road Coast and Parks Authority.

$20,587.20

Guarding Gariwerd: empowering the community to control priority invasive species around an iconic national park

Project Platypus

This project aims to establish long term partnerships between stakeholders and private landholders to protect Gariwerd (the Grampians) from weeds and pest animals. The project will establish formal partnerships between stakeholders and run a series of workshops to connect experts with community. The project will create locally focussed resource packs and support training for Barengi Gadjin Land Council staff. This project also supports the partnership with the Wimmera Biodiversity Seminar to deliver on the theme of invasive species for 2024.

$37,450

Community-led action for pest and weed control in South Gippsland

South Gippsland Landcare Network

The project will deliver a range of initiatives including a seminar with guest speakers on weeds and pest animals.  Two community management groups will be established for local collaborative action. The groups will hold field workshops with technical experts on target species. The project will also engage with Traditional Owners to share information and build partnerships. Project partners include the West Gippsland Catchment Management Authority and the South Gippsland Shire Council.

$33,792

People Against Pests in the Mansfield environment

Up2Us Landcare Alliance Mansfield

This project focusses on priority species for the local community including rabbits, feral pigs, blackberry, gorse and Paterson’s curse. The project will provide community education via online resources, site visits, education events and field days with expert guest speakers. The group will develop neighbourhood pest management plans and case studies and provide advice on pasture management and controlling weeds in times of drought. The project will build on place-based action year on year and is collaborating with Mansfield Shire and Goulburn Broken Catchment Management Authority.

$28,520

Developing Partnerships Against Pests in Southwest Victoria

Warrnambool Coastcare Landcare Network

This project will bring together a range of stakeholders using a comprehensive community education and engagement program. Workshops will aim to focus and improve control efforts to achieve best return on investment. The project will facilitate the delivery of workshops from Victorian Blackberry Taskforce, Victorian Gorse Taskforce and Victorian Rabbit Action Network. A collaborative taskforce will be formed with 15 partnered organisations to host events where experts will deliver information about cultural and environmental values and best practice management. The project will develop a localised set of resources using expert and local experience.

$41,942

WPCLN Building Catchment capacity and partnerships in the battle against invasive pests!

Western Port Catchment Landcare Network

This project will deliver community farm walks focussed on priority species detailed in the Cardinia Shire Bio-links plan. It will also deliver vertebrate pest information nights, as well as farmer discussion groups led by a professional facilitator to drive discussion and action. This project involves collaboration with Agriculture Victoria’s Established Invasive Animal team, the Victorian Blackberry Taskforce and Cardinia Shire Council.

$16,230

Reducing biosecurity risks to horticulture through engagement with agencies and community to promote blackberry control.

Victorian Blackberry Taskforce

Recently completed research confirms blackberry is a host for fruit fly in sampled areas of Victoria. This project aims to communicate this information with stakeholders through community engagement sessions. The project will produce maps showing the extent of blackberry and provide the research, report, and extent to linear land managers. Local Government Areas that have horticultural assets with the potential to be affected by QFF will receive information packs including a copy of the research report, an information sheet and detail with the likely impacts on the local industries if no action is taken. The project will also produce a video of the community information sessions as well as a television commercial and social media posts.

$26,460

The Power of Community - Establishing foundations for gorse and serrated tussock Communities of Practice.

Victorian Gorse Taskforce in collaboration with Victorian Serrated Tussock Working Party

Community of Practices (CoPs) are a missing piece to both VGT and VSTWP working models. This project aims to establish a CoP for the VGT and the VSTWP to expand their focus, bolster their cause and work directly in communities. The project will develop a comprehensive and tailored CoP framework, this will include engaging:

• A   Statewide Community Engagement Coordinator to identify, train and support CoP   members
• 2   Community Ambassadors for each CPMG who will be charged with facilitating the   CoP activities, fostering communication and trust among the members, and   promote the CoP outcomes and benefits to the wider public.

$85,000

Effective cross-tenure management of serrated tussock, gorse and rabbits.

Victorian Serrated Tussock Working Party in collaboration with Victorian Gorse Taskforce and Victorian Rabbit Action Network

The VSTWP with VBT, VGT and VRAN are facing challenges in managing their respective species across various land tenures. The project aims to adopt a more strategic approach to engagement and facilitate partnerships and collaboration.

Key stakeholders will be identified and engaged to:

• Determine the drivers and barriers for effective cross tenure   management
• Identify suitable collaborative technologies,
• Identify opportunities for organisations to share existing infestation   data and provide recommendations for auditing systems to ensure scheduled   works are carried out as expected

The project will partner with The Centre for Invasive Species Solutions (CISS) to use stakeholder feedback and project findings to custom build the WeedScan app to better meet stakeholder needs.

$65,000

Mentor Recruitment and Professional Development: Ensuring a Sustainable Future for Community Led Rabbit Action Across Victoria.

Victorian Rabbit Action Network

To achieve VRAN’s strategy priorities the Network is developing succession plans to ensure future capacity to deliver the necessary programs and services across Victoria. This project will involve the hosting of a Mentor Master Class utilising the bootcamp alumni. The pool of graduates of the Mentor Master Class will provide VRAN with an additional number of skilled people (up to 3) to help the VRAN Mentor Team deliver its courses and services.

All graduates of the Master Class will be invited to form a Community of Practice (CoP) to continue their advancement as mentors within their communities.

$59,972

Understanding Mental Health, Public Health and Invasive Species Management and Compliance.

Victorian Rabbit Action Network with the support of Victorian Blackberry Taskforce, Victorian Gorse Taskforce and Victoria Serrated Tussock Working Party

This project aims to review the relationship between mental health and landowners and land mangers willingness and ability to manage established invasive species on their properties. The project will engage a social scientist to undertake a scoping study to gather and synthesise information on the role and effects of:

• Mental health on   invasive species management and compliance; alongside the other main   determinants of compliance.
• Collective   community action on invasive species management, land management and   ecological restoration more broadly on public health.

$15,000