What teachings are being shared by weeds? Lessons from the Shoalhaven River

Invasive plants present significant challenges to the health of Country. Weeds are part of substantial ecological disruptions, including along river systems in Australia. However, despite the imperative to manage them, weed control is far from straightforward. Not only is weed management difficult and costly, but weeds are often uprooted from their habitats without consideration of the desires and wishes of local people, or even consideration of the weeds themselves as agentic nonhumans and part of Country.

Interventions to manage weeds often focus on the weeds themselves, overlooking the human role in their spread. This happens because conventional weed management strategies tend to treat weeds as isolated problems, rather than considering the broader ecological and social contexts in which they exist. This oversight sets the stage for the violence that permeates conventional weed management, characterised by eradication and control efforts that demonise weedy plants through metaphors of war and aggression. In this context, while conventional management approaches may prove effective in controlling invasive species, they often fail to fully resonate with local and Indigenous perspectives and the reciprocal relationships people prioritise with Country. Conventional management thus overlooks the holistic and the oneness nature of relationships that many Indigenous people have with the land. In failing to acknowledge the importance of understanding and respecting the cultural and spiritual dimensions of weed management, which are central to Indigenous worldviews, conventional weed management also fails to reassert and re-establish better relationships between people and Country that work towards healing.

Indigenous approaches suggest a different way of relating to Country through weed management is possible. With recognition of the inseparable cultural and ecological connections maintained by Indigenous people who care for Country, in this thesis, I consider how the ethics and practice of care can be brought into the spaces of managing invasive plants. I examine the human and more-than-human relationships that shape attitudes and actions toward invasive plants and their management along the Shoalhaven River in NSW. Building on emerging national and international research on Indigenous relationships with weeds, I aim to shed light on ancient natural resource management solutions to contemporary problems. I develop this work as a Gundungurra woman by sharing my developing relationship with Country and the Yuin ontologies and methodological approach that helped me to learn from Country. I draw upon ancient Indigenous and more-than-human methodologies that enable me to learn from weeds and other nonhumans as a researcher. In my journey of learning, River, as she is known to me, becomes my guide. In turn, I yarn with River Country, including her weeds, engage in storytelling and gain insights from Travels (dreams) about how to relate to invasive plants in this place. Acknowledging the teachings that come from River and from the weeds themselves highlights the many reciprocal relationships they are part of and their impact on how weeds may be managed. I also develop this work by examining the relationships Aboriginal cultural knowledge holders and weed managers who are connected to and work along River have with weeds. Their perspectives, knowledge, and practices, shared with me through yarning, illustrate how Aboriginal people relate to weeds and how they learn from weeds about the health of Country and its management. From this basis, I identify existing and emergent methods that might be important for learning to live and work with weeds along River.

My results demonstrate how Aboriginal spiritual, cultural and ecological knowledge, attitudes and practices toward invasive plants are bound within relationships to Country. While existing research has provided valuable information into the relationships between Aboriginal people and invasive plant management, this thesis reveals the relationship between culture, values, and practices that inform and shape Indigenous weed management. Three key themes are presented in this research. First, the theme of care highlights the importance of respect, responsibility, and reciprocity in managing invasive plants. Illustrating how invasive plants can teach people ways to manage them and communicate the health of Country, a focus on care foreshadows nurturing ways of living with weeds outside of conventional framings of them as threats or a risk to be managed. Second, I present a discussion of healing in relation to weed management, which underscores the reciprocal relationship between people and weeds, showing how weeds can be seen as teachers for healing Country. A perspective on healing shifts the focus from viewing invasive plants only as detrimental, to recognising their duality and potential to contribute to the health and restoration of ecosystems. Third, the theme of balance emphasises the Yuin ontology of oneness with all humans and nonhumans as Country and suggests that instead of positioning invasive plants purely as sources of negative outcomes, weeds may be woven into our understanding of ecological harmony and reciprocal relationships.

The research I document here advocates for a weaving together of Indigenous knowledge systems and values into contemporary weed management practices, promoting strategies that are not only ecologically sound but also culturally meaningful and respectful for all involved. First, I signal a need to re-establish a deep connection between people and Country, including nonhuman entities such as Grandmother Moon and Snake, to enhance understanding and participation in weed management practices. Reconnecting the self to Country involves paying attention to natural cycles, maintaining a sense of oneness with all living things, and aligning one's practices with Country's own cycles. Second, I emphasise that a holistic approach to contemporary weed management is required. A holistic approach embeds deep respect for the nonhuman world and weaves Indigenous perspectives on care and ecological balance in order to contribute to the health of Country. By embracing these ideas, all people involved in weed management may strengthen their relationships with Country and contribute to more respectful and effective weed management.