Connecting the Australian desert to the rest of the world

1. Connecting the Australian desert to the rest of the world Mark Stafford Smith, CSIRO Sustainable Ecosystems(DK-CRC Science of Desert Living project) Desert Knowledge Symposium, 4th Nov 2008 On Arrernte country

2. Where I’m going • Understanding the drivers • What makes the desert different also creates its needs and opportunities • Connecting • To Australia to deal with desert Australia better • Responding to the desert’s comparative advantages • For business opportunities & to benefit other regions • In a global deserts (remote areas?) alliance

3. CLIMATE VARIABILITY: Variability and extremes in primary drivers (rainfall, other weather) LIMITED LIVELIHOODS:Lack of diverse small business and livelihood options SCARCE CAPITAL:Low levels of financial, physical and human investment SCARCE RESOURCES:Widespread low soil fertility and patchy natural resources SPARSE POPULATION:Sparse, mobile and patchy human population REMOTENESS:Distant markets, business, political centres, mental models LOCAL KNOWLEDGE:Limited research, local/traditional knowledge more important CULTURAL DIFFERENCES: Particular types of people, cultures and institutions SOCIAL UNCERTAINTY:Unpredictability in or lack of control over markets, labour, policy Science of Desert Living Connecting #1: have these factors better understood by the rest of Australia Recognising the ‘Desert Syndrome’ Stafford Smith (2008) Rangeland Journal 30: 3-14

4. CLIMATE VARIABILITY: Variability and extremes in primary drivers (rainfall, other weather) LIMITED LIVELIHOODS:Lack of diverse small business and livelihood options SCARCE CAPITAL:Low levels of financial, physical and human investment SCARCE RESOURCES:Widespread low soil fertility and patchy natural resources SPARSE POPULATION:Sparse, mobile and patchy human population REMOTENESS:Distant markets, business, political centres, mental models LOCAL KNOWLEDGE:Limited research, local/traditional knowledge more important CULTURAL DIFFERENCES: Particular types of people, cultures and institutions SOCIAL UNCERTAINTY:Unpredictability in or lack of control over markets, labour, policy Science of Desert Living Although we tend to regard these (with urban prejudices) as problems, desert dwellers have to live with and overcome these issues, thus creating one major source of comparative advantage for desert Australia Recognising the ‘Desert Syndrome’ Stafford Smith (2008) Rangeland Journal 30: 3-14

5. Sources of comparative advantage • Resources in abundance, not available elsewhere • Minerals, sunlight, space • ‘Located’ natural and cultural resources • Tourism, extensive grazing, bush foods • Local culture, music, art • Knowledge about managing for/with desert drivers • Technologies driven by or made competitive by desert conditions – large scale, variability, sparse populations • Remote area power supplies, flying doctor, remote sensing, governance systems • Do/develop in desert Australia, export elsewhere

6. CLIMATE VARIABILITY: Variability and extremes in primary drivers (rainfall, other weather) LIMITED LIVELIHOODS:Lack of diverse small business and livelihood options SCARCE CAPITAL:Low levels of financial, physical and human investment SCARCE RESOURCES:Widespread low soil fertility and patchy natural resources SPARSE POPULATION:Sparse, mobile and patchy human population REMOTENESS:Distant markets, business, political centres, mental models LOCAL KNOWLEDGE:Limited research, local/traditional knowledge more important CULTURAL DIFFERENCES: Particular types of people, cultures and institutions SOCIAL UNCERTAINTY:Unpredictability in or lack of control over markets, labour, policy Living with and taking advantage of the differences Empowering communitywater management Science of Desert Living Valuing cultural andenvironmental services Develop local livelihood options (including social, community and traditional services) Mobile & remoteeducation delivery Flexible stocking strategies Manage with (not against) variability and scarcity Establish independent (transparent) capital and recurrent funding mechanisms Remote sensing formonitoring large areas Business clusteringacross the desert Build regional critical mass BUT maintain local accountability; seek economies of scope more than scale; create/support strategic alliances Enable demand rather than supply driven services Flying doctor service Service agenciescombining roads, healthetc Opportunistically install tiered governance with local/regional autonomy; bolster local voice, allow local differences Using new communicationstechnologies Mining alliances for employment Use local skills where possible; insulate from policy changes (distinguish delivery from governance at most scales) Redesigned local government Stafford Smith (2008) Rangeland Journal 30: 3-14

7. CLIMATE VARIABILITY: Variability and extremes in primary drivers (rainfall, other weather) LIMITED LIVELIHOODS:Lack of diverse small business and livelihood options SCARCE CAPITAL:Low levels of financial, physical and human investment SCARCE RESOURCES:Widespread low soil fertility and patchy natural resources SPARSE POPULATION:Sparse, mobile and patchy human population REMOTENESS:Distant markets, business, political centres, mental models LOCAL KNOWLEDGE:Limited research, local/traditional knowledge more important CULTURAL DIFFERENCES: Particular types of people, cultures and institutions SOCIAL UNCERTAINTY:Unpredictability in or lack of control over markets, labour, policy Why should the rest of Australia (or world) care?? Increasingly variable / uncertain / not-previously-experienced climates Connecting #2: some (not all) desert drivers are becoming increasingly relevant outside the desert, creating opportunities to help Growing resource scarcities Increasing gap between rural areas and urban users of ecosystem services Increasing population mobility Growing challenge to link local knowledge, policy & research Changing nature of settlement Stafford Smith (2008) Rangeland Journal 30: 3-14

8. Growing urban-rural divide Uncertain, more variable future climates Where are we talking about? #1 City watershortages Sea-change settlements fragmenting communities

9. Drylands: ~40% of the world’s land surface, home to ~2 billion people, 1bn with livelihoods based on natural resources. + Other remote regions + Other changing regions (From Leemans & Kleidon 2002) Where are we talking about? #2 Connecting #3: create trading partnerships and learning alliances with other desert and remote regions, to mutual benefit

10. Conclusions • Take advantage of different terms of trade to develop technology/process, then market in different places • Remote area power supplies, better governance systems, managing uncertainty, servicing mobility… • Cope with the desert’s unique nature/challenges, then market in similar places • RFDS, School of the Air, mining services, communications… • Combine to be ahead of everyone… • All core business for Desert Knowledge • But we can learn from other regions too • Time to create a global Desert Knowledge Alliance! • Around communities of practice initially

11. Desert KnowledgeScience of Desert Living project mark.staffordsmith@csiro.au www.desertknowledgecrc.com.au