2021-01-18 GC - Item 1 - Attachment 1 - Noosa Biosphere Reserve Foundation 2019 20 Annual Report

                                                   NOOSA BIOSPHERE RESERVE FOUNDATION – 2019/20




SYMPOSIUMS 2020/21

The successful koala symposium held in 2019,                presentation on the impacts of the recent
established this as an extremely effective method           bushfires and mitigation practices. Bettina Walter
of identifying current and emerging issues,                 and Desire Gralton from local community group,
leveraging funding and resources and ultimately             Glossy Team Sunrise will present their on-ground
creating real collaborative change. The board               actions and issues; local Glossy experts, Bob Carey
proposes to continue the symposiums initiative              and Eric Anderson from the Glossy Black
with the view to attract philanthropic support,             Conservancy will bring valued expertise and Kim
state and federal grant funding and corporate               and Joel Morris of Bushland Conservation
sponsorship to support the priority actions                 Management will speak on efficacy of nesting
identified. There is substantial opportunity to             boxes.
grow these events over time to become
international conferences, raising the profile of           A key focus of the Forum is to develop a
Noosa as a world-leader in sustainable                      prospectus of realistic and achievable actions. This
development and biodiversity conservation.                  prospectus will be taken to market by NBRF to
                                                            leverage funds for critical conservation and
Glossy Black-Cockatoo Forum                                 management actions that invest in: filling
The Foundation is hosting a one-day Glossy Black-           potential gaps in understanding, coordinating and
Cockatoo Forum on 17 November to seek key                   scaling of existing relevant initiatives and
stakeholder input into the development of a                 supporting direct stakeholder organisation’s
program of work that aims to identify current on-           actions.
ground conservation, care and research efforts in
and around the Noosa Biosphere Reserve. The                 Marine Species Preservation Symposium
aim of the forum is to support the ongoing efforts          NBRF have begun investigating the impact of
of community groups, researchers and individuals            existing shark nets in Laguna Bay and drumlines
to better understand and protect the Glossy                 along the coastline between Sunshine Beach and
Black-Cockatoo habitat.                                     Peregian Beach to ascertain current technologies
                                                            that may provide better outcomes for the
A renowned ‘fussy eater’ the Glossy Black-                  Biosphere Reserve such as reducing bycatch and
Cockatoo only feeds on casuarina seeds. We know             protecting endangered shark species.
that their feed trees are currently under threat,
however, we don’t know where their nesting                  Discussions are underway with experts on this
trees are situated. This forum aims to share                subject at the Australian Marine Institute (AMI),
current knowledge and activities on Glossy Black-           Flinders University (FU), University of the
Cockatoos, to identify gaps and opportunities for           Sunshine Coast (USC), and the Queensland
future management. Our priority is to coordinate            Department of Agriculture and Fisheries’ (DAF).
better understanding and protection of their                All have expressed their interest in researching
habitat to ensure the future survival of this iconic        potential options and establishing a scientific
species.                                                    working group to commission a report into
                                                            alternative marine species preservation in the
NBRF board director, Jady Smith, will facilitate the        Noosa Biosphere Reserve.
forum and we are very pleased to have secured
leading researchers Daniella Teixeira, UQ and               The NBRF aims to bring these and other key
Gabriel Conroy, USC to present their research on            stakeholders together at a Marine Species
breeding ecology and bio-acoustics and feeding              Preservation Symposium in May 2021 with the
ecology respectively. Peter Milne, Noosa Council            view to running a trial utilising the latest advances
Principal Environment Officer, will deliver a               in shark mitigation techniques.




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