Project update – July

Much of our focus over the past month was on how the cultural and ecological values of the Ginninderra site can be protected in the future.

Last week, the Mulanggang Traditional Aboriginal Landcare Group, Ginninderra Catchment Group and CSIRO invited members of the community to celebrate NAIDOC Week by learning about the rich cultural landscape in the Ginninderra area and helping to look after country.

The Heritage Interpretation Walk, led by Ngunawal custodian, Wally Bell, presented a great opportunity to discover the Aboriginal heritage and cultural values of the site.

The walk was followed by a community planting activity where participants, led by the Aboriginal Green Army, helped to restore the shrub layer in a patch of Box-Gum Grassy Woodland. In total, 17 members of the community planted over 180 shrubs on the day. Combined with the community planting days held in May, 3,500 shrubs have now been planted – a fantastic achievement by all involved!

If you are interested in future events like this, make sure you are registered to receive our CSIRO Ginninderra newsletters or keep in touch with Ginninderra Catchment Group and Landcare.

This month we also shed more light on CSIRO’s ambitions and the positive impact we anticipate from the Ginninderra venture.

Whilst many of the finer details of the urban development at CSIRO Ginninderra will not be clarified until a development partner is confirmed and a Development Control Plan is finalised, ongoing community engagement will continue. The earliest that any development could commence on the site would be in 2019.

CSIRO’s ambition is that the Ginninderra venture will help to advance the science and innovation that underpins sustainable, liveable and resilient cities, bringing a stream of benefits to the ACT and the nation, as well as generating revenue to support Australian science.

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