Taking action now will ensure WA’s nature is protected for the future.
We’re working with people and groups across our state and we’d love you to join us.
From world-class, jointly managed national parks to Indigenous-led conservation and private protected areas; WA Better by Nature is backing practical, proven ways to protect the nature that looks after West Aussies and makes WA so special. We’re also supporting national efforts to ensure there’s enough funding from the Federal Government to protect nature at the state level.
It’s a big goal! But we know by bringing people together we can be powerful and do better for nature and better for people. Join us today.
Creating more world-class parks
We’ve got some of the best national and conservation parks on the planet — and they do a lot more than just look good in a photo.
Our parks have many benefits for people and nature:
🌱 Protecting WA’s rich biodiversity and preventing extinctions
🥾 Offering places to visit, camp and connect with nature
💼 Supporting jobs and boosting regional tourism
🧠 Giving us places to switch off and relax
❤️ Providing opportunities for First Nations people to care for Country and benefit from partnerships
WA is leading the nation in jointly-managed national parks where Traditional Owners and the WA Government work together to care for culture, Country and legacy.
Creating more world-class parks will create more access to the parts of WA we love. It’s a win-win for nature, local communities and future generations.
How public-private partnerships do better by nature
Across WA, landholders are going the extra mile to protect biodiversity on private land.
Private land conservation plays a crucial role in protecting and managing natural and cultural landscapes alongside our publicly-owned national parks and Indigenous-led conservation areas. Two powerful ways this is happening are:
Conservancies
- Purchase and care for ecologically and culturally significant land
- Help connect fragmented landscapes
- Support biodiversity, wildlife introductions and habitat corridors for our native animals
- Collaborate with Traditional Owners, government and conservation partners
Covenants
- Support landholders to look after nature on their own property
- Can be supported with stewardship programs for invasive species control, fencing and land management
- Contribute to protected areas in underrepresented bioregions with little protection
- Reconnect fragmented natural and cultural landscapes to create protection corridors
We’re advocating for WA’s government to fund and revitalise conservation covenanting and stewardship in Western Australia. We also want to see large-scale private land conservation better supported with government partnerships and co-funding arrangements.
Caring for Country by those who know it best
Traditional Owners and First Nations people have cared for and managed Country for tens of thousands of years, and looking after WA’s nature for the future means backing the people who’ve been doing it since the start.
Indigenous-led Conservation
Aboriginal Rangers stand side-by-side with other land managers on the frontline of conservation — combining deep cultural knowledge and local experience with on-the-ground action:
🐾 Protecting native species
🔥 Managing with fire
🪨 Looking after cultural sites and songlines
💧 Keeping Country healthy for the future
🧬 Sharing with two-way science
❤️ Improving health and wellbeing in remote communities
When culture and conservation work together
WA’s Aboriginal Ranger programs are leading the way — bringing together traditional knowledge and modern science in true partnership and delivering results for our jointly managed national parks.
The Federal Indigenous Protected Areas program is another stand out example of Indigenous-led conservation supporting outcomes for people and Country.
These programs are creating jobs, strengthening cultural connection and delivering better outcomes for people and nature.
When Traditional Owners and First Nations people lead conservation, it’s better for nature, better for communities — and better for WA. When everyone works together, we get better support for looking after WA!
Better funding for WA’s nature
Without proper funding — we’re at risk of losing parts of WA that we take for granted
- 🐾 WA has the highest number of native mammals at risk of extinction in the next two decades
- 🌿 The largest decline in plant species across Australia and the most threatened plants
- 🧬 Some of the most sensitive ecosystems on Earth – making them vulnerable and dangerously exposed
Right now, there’s not enough national investment to look after WA’s nature and protect what matters. That’s why we’re supporting the 30 by 30 goal — to protect at least 30% of Australia’s land by 2030 — and calling for a fair go and a serious boost in federal funding for nature. 💪🏾
We need a fair go for the future of WA’s nature
Just 1% of the federal budget invested in nature, could support WA by:
- 🛑 Stopping extinctions
- 🛠 Federal and State co-funding to create world-class private and public protected areas
- 🌿 Supporting protection in areas of WA that need them the most, like the Wheatbelt
- 🔄 Backing jobs, culture and regional communities
Experts agree: by investing just 1% of the national budget, we can help give WA’s nature the protection it deserves for future generations to come. Federal funding will give WA the resources it urgently needs to make sure our favourite parts of WA and the places that we take for granted are no longer at risk of being lost and are looked after properly.
Iconic places – now protected for the future thanks to people like you.
Purungunya National Park
Nyamal Country, Pilbara
Purungunya National Park is the first new conservation estate created in the Pilbara in over a decade — protecting more than 200,000 hectares of Nyamal Country, 91 threatened species, and one of the world’s best examples of fossilised stromatolites, dating back 2.7 billion years!
Nanda National Park
Nanda Country, Mid West
Nanda National Park, north of Geraldton, is where nature, culture and community come together. Jointly managed with Nanda Traditional Owners, rangers are on the ground caring for Country, protecting wildlife like the black-flanked rock wallaby, and creating new opportunities for nature-based tourism in WA’s Mid West.
Yurriyangem Taam National Park
Kija Country, Kimberley
Yurriyangem Taam National Park is one of WA’s newest protected areas on Kija Country in the Kimberley. Jointly managed with Kija Traditional Owners, the park supports local jobs, protects part of the Martuwarra-Fitzroy River — one of the world’s last free-flowing river systems — and helps look after unique species like the Gouldian finch and freshwater sawfish.
Malgana National Park
Malgana Country, Gathaagudu (Shark Bay)
New national parks and reserves have been created on Malgana Country in WA’s Gascoyne region, adding protection to the iconic, World Heritage-listed Gathaagudu (Shark Bay). Jointly managed with Malgana Traditional Owners, these parks help care for endangered species like the Shark Bay mouse and protect important cultural sites for future generations.
These are more than just places – they’re WA’s legacy. Imagine life in our state without them. Join us in doing better by nature for WA.
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