Under the Agreement the Ministerial Forum convenes a conference to be attended by the members of the Ministerial Forum, members of committees appointed or adopted under this Agreement and of other interested groups, interested individuals, scientific and technical advisers and senior government officers. The conference is held on at least a biennial basis.
The aim of the Conference is to provide the opportunity for members of the Lake Eyre Basin community, scientists, government officials and other parties with an interest in the sustainable management of the Basin to exchange information and views relevant to the implementation of the Lake Eyre Basin Intergovernmental Agreement.
The Call for Presentations is now open for potential oral and poster presentations to address the conference theme and the following subject areas:
The deadline for presentation submissions is Tuesday 30 April 2013.
Information about preparing and submitting presentations is available in the following documents:
Basin voice: shared understanding and action for a sustainable LEB future
Linking science and management
Continuing the tradition of connecting with regional Basin communities, this September the LEB Conference visits the South Australian rangelands town of Port Augusta, a fitting location for individuals, organisations and governments with an interest in the sustainable management of the Basin to gather and exchange information and views relevant to the implementation of the Lake Eyre Basin Intergovernmental Agreement.
The Conference will again seek to mix strong community input with scientific contributions as a platform for rich discussion about the management of the Basin's water and related natural resources into the future. The two key goals of the Conference are:
A program of oral presentations, landholder stories, poster displays, small group discussions, social gatherings and local field trips will create multiple opportunities for exchanging views and knowledge about the natural, cultural, economic and social resilience of the Basin to current and future threats and pressures, as well as explore what we can do, as a connected community, to manage the system sustainably.
Conference registration and program details will be posted on this webpage as they are confirmed.
Alternatively, you can register with the LEB Secretariat to receive email notifications of Conference details as they are updated - emma.ross@environment.gov.au, 02 6275 9348.
Registration will open in May 2013.
The Conference Organising Committee is made up of members of the LEB Community Advisory Committee and Scientific Advisory Panel, regional NRM groups and government officers. If you would like to contribute to the planning and development of the Conference program, please contact the Organising Committee through the Chair – Mr Vol Norris, vol.norris@environment.gov.au, 07 4650 1235.
The Future of the Lake Eyre Basin – A Participatory Conference
The fifth biennial Lake Eyre Basin Conference, was held at the Crowne Plaza in Alice Springs, focussed on lessons from the past and pathways into the future for the Basin. In this 10th anniversary year of the signing of the LEB Agreement, the conference looked briefly over the past 10 years, then 10 years forward to a rich spectrum of possible futures for communities, industries, environments and technologies in the Basin. Through a mix of invited presentations and facilitated futuring workshops, the conference challenged attendees to imagine and prepare for the futures that may await the Basin, based on regional, national and global trends.
In the tradition of past LEB conferences, the 2010 Conference again mixed strong community input and knowledge with technical and scientific contributions from leading researchers, resulting in a robust discussion of the future among a wide range of interests and people.
Invited speakers provided thought-provoking presentations based around four key themes — 'community', 'environment', 'industry' and 'technology' — leading into workshop sessions that scoped out an understanding of what the future may bring and how the Basin community can rise to the challenges that emerge.
Conference speakers included:
Please continue to check this web site for the conference proceedings.
Conference queries can be directed to the LEB Facilitator, Vol Norris.
The fourth Lake Eyre Basin Biennial Conference was held on the 15th and 16th of September 2008 in Longreach, Queensland, at the RM Williams Cottage, Longreach Stockman’s Hall of Fame and Outback Heritage Centre.
Based around the theme ‘The Lake Eyre Basin Agreement — Foundations for a Five Year Action Plan’, the conference was an opportunity for participating Governments, Community and Scientific Advisory Committees, Regional NRM Boards and their associated Catchment or District Committees/Groups, and related State/Territory Departments, local government agencies, industry groups and NGO's to discuss future planning for the Lake Eyre Basin Agreement.
The conference aimed to discuss and make recommendations on the foundations, directions and core content of the Five Year Action Plan, and exchange knowledge and plan key collaborations among the main groups involved in natural resource management in the Basin. The conference generated 32 recommendations for the Five Year Action Plan.
Feedback on the conference was positive and indicated that the event was successful in:
The third Lake Eyre Basin Biennial Conference was held at the Chaffey Theatre in Renmark, South Australia, on Thursday 7th and Friday 8th September 2006, closely linked to the 2006 Biennial Conference of the Australian Rangeland Society.
Together, the two conferences occupied the week from 4th to 8th September 2006, with opportunities for delegates to attend both conferences, or parts of each.
Drawing on the conference themes, ‘People, Place and Possibilities’, the LEB conference brought together a wide range of people from the community, government, industry and research sectors, and developed clear messages for the first, formal 5-year review of the LEB Agreement conducted in 2006-07. Key messages included:
The second Lake Eyre Basin Biennial Conference was held at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Alice Springs on the 27-29 October 2004. The Conference coincided with the fourth anniversary of the signing of the Lake Eyre Basin Intergovernmental Agreement. The conference also welcomed the Northern Territory, which became signatory to the agreement in June 2004.
The themes for the Conference:
Download the Proceedings of Conference 2004 as a PDF file
The inaugural Lake Eyre Basin Ministerial Forum Biennial Conference was held at the Birdsville Community Hall on 25-26 October 2002. The Conference was held in conjunction with meetings of the Lake Eyre Basin Ministerial Forum, the Cooper Creek and Georgina-Diamantina Catchment Committees, the Lake Eyre Basin Community Advisory Committee and the Lake Eyre Basin Scientific Advisory Panel.
The themes of the Conference:
Download the Proceedings of Conference 2002 as a PDF file
The Lake Eyre Basin Agreement requires the appropriate representation of Indigenous Interests in the development and implementation of policies and strategies for the Basin.
The 4th LEB Aboriginal Forum, held from the 13th to 15th of September 2011 in Tibooburra, New South Wales, was attended by nearly 80 people from across the Basin and beyond.
A full proceedings document will be available later in 2012. For more information contact the LEB Facilitator, Vol Norris
Water, land and connections across the Lake Eyre Basin — Sharing the journey and passing on knowledge
Reconnecting
The Richness of the Basin
The LEB Shared Journey
The third LEB Aboriginal Forum was held in Birdsville, Queensland in May 2009. The 2009 Forum was the most widely representative forum so far, with over 50 Aboriginal people coming together to share their knowledge of culture and land management with 25 non-Aboriginal scientists, historians, conservationists and government officers. It focussed on sharing information, stories and knowledge about the trade routes that criss-cross the Basin and which originally linked the many diverse Aboriginal language groups in the region through ceremony, songlines, exchange of ideas and material goods. These past links and traditions have strong similarities with the current aims of ensuring a more holistic and collaborative management approach to protecting the values of the Basin.
Facilitated largely by the Aboriginal members of LEB Community Advisory Committee, the forum produced a rich, refreshing and, at times, challenging spectrum of debate and generated a number of recommendations to strengthen Aboriginal involvement and communication in the LEB.
In response to the recommendations that came out of the 2009 Forum, the Ministerial Forum has formally endorsed:
1This is consistent with the National Water Initiative requirement for water plans to take account of Indigenous social, spiritual and customary objectives wherever possible - see clauses 52-54 at:
The second LEB Aboriginal Forum was held at Mount Serle in the northern Flinders Ranges, South Australia, on 22-24 August 2006. The purpose of the forum was:
To strengthen links with Aboriginal people and groups in the Lake Eyre Basin, exchange knowledge and discuss priorities for water and related land issues, and develop collaborations of mutual benefit in implementing the Lake Eyre Basin Agreement.
Download the Second Lake Eyre Basin Aboriginal Forum as a PDF file
The first LEB Aboriginal Forum was held at Hamilton Downs Youth Camp near Alice Springs, NT, on 25th and 26th October 2004, immediately before the second LEB biennial Conference.
Approximately 30 people attended the Forum, from Alpurrurulam, Hamilton Downs, Alice Springs and Hermannsburg in the NT, Coober Pedy, Marree, Port Augusta and Adelaide in SA, Longreach, Barcaldine and Eulo in Queensland, and Canberra.
The objectives of the forum were to:
Five main issues emerged from the forum:
The Lake Eyre Basin Agreement is implemented by the Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities, and the Queensland, South Australian and Northern Territory Governments
Last Updated: Friday, 19-Apr-2013 13:14:57 EST
