Have you seen the Big Map of the Landscapes of Southern Queensland? It touched down late last year in Goondiwindi, St George, Roma, Miles and Dalby at our round table events. It has been a focus of community conversation about how people value the landscapes across the region, and how we can work together to ensure they flourish into the future. 

While community round tables have already been hosted in Charleville, Quilpie, Thargomindah and Cunnamulla, the Big Map is set to continue its journey when it travels to Mitchell, Stanthorpe, Millmerran and Toowoomba next month.

Round table events have been a vehicle for meaningful and collaborative conversations. A major discussion point has been the need to do things differently in terms of the stewardship of natural assets. Other topics explored include the drought, grazing pressure, pest management, carbon farming and the need to enhance the health of our soils and grasslands.

Conversations to date have highlighted that communities, industry and local governments are doing incredible work and that other outcomes could be achieved by working together as a region. This conversation extends to communities working collaboratively, inspiring each other and future generations. Igniting the passion to feel proud of the region and of the community work invested in looking after our landscapes, has been a rallying call from attendees at our round table events. 

The purpose behind the round table events, including those still to be hosted, is to collate the ideas, knowledge and experiences from the community, land managers and First Nations peoples. This information will inform discussions at three regional workshops to be held in March. The regional workshops will use a process called a design charrette to engage community and industry representatives, and local and invited knowledge holders, to help reimagine a future for the region in tune with community aspirations. 

This powerful combination of insight and future visioning will help tell the story of the landscapes of Southern Queensland, and be the driving force behind a meaningful and collaborative action plan for the future. The plan will be used to attract investment and interest, to support communities across the region to care for Country, achieve outcomes in the paddock, backyard and beyond, and help land managers find new ways to become more profitable on their place.

Community consultation will continue over the next six months, with the view of the action plan being finished by the end of 2021. To learn more about the action plan, contact Andrew Davidson on andrew.davidson@sqlandscapes.org.au.

Would you like to have your say at an upcoming round table event? To join us in Mitchell, Toowoomba, Stanthorpe or Millmerran, click on the button below for dates, times and to RSVP. For additional queries about the events, contact Jenny Cameron on (07) 4620 0111 or jenny.cameron@sqlandscapes.org.au. 

Image Caption: The Big Map with attendees from the Goondiwindi Community Round Table event.