Hunter Local Land Services, in partnership with Firesticks Alliance, is supporting Tocal College in developing a Certificate III, IV and Diploma in Conservation and Ecosystem Management, Cultural Burn with 13 sites, Karuah one of them, picked to pilot the practical component of the course.

Hunter Local Land Services Aboriginal community officer, Toby Whaleboat, said the course could not have been developed or proceed without the support of local elders and community, especially in allowing the students to work on country.

"We are so grateful to be working with traditional owners, our community and Local Aboriginal Land Councils in the Hunter and Manning Great Lakes, as well as our training partners to deliver this unique course," Mr Whaleboat said.

"The students will get access to some of the best teachers in the country, including Victor Steffensen from Firesticks Alliance, combined with local knowledge passed on through elders here in our region. We're hoping this pilot course could become the model for teaching cultural burning knowledge in a formal land management capacity across Australia."

The pilot is the first tertiary qualified cultural burn course to be conducted in Australia. It will teaches students Aboriginal fire knowledge practices and Western science to help them understand the positive ecological impacts of cultural burning, plus Aboriginal land management practices focusing on traditional fire management practices and techniques.

There are 30 students enrolled in the pilot who hail from a diverse range of employment and community backgrounds.

The cultural burn sites have been selected for their various vegetation and ecosystems including coastal scrub, Box-Gum grassy woodlands, open grassy woodlands and high elevated areas such as Mount Sugar Loaf.

Each of the burns is being held on different types of land tenures from travelling stock reserves to privately held properties, teaching the students how to apply the correct fire knowledge to specific types of vegetation to achieve the best outcomes for the landscape.

Monitoring plans will be developed and established to capture data prior to and after each burn. It is hoped outcomes will include reducing weed infestations, improving the health, function of native vegetation communities, protecting habitat for native animals and reducing the risks of wildfires, promoting resilient landscapes.

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