In a small corner of the Great Barrier Reef world heritage area a group of Indigenous rangers are learning new skills to protect and preserve the culturally significant lands of Yunbenan or magnetic island. They say the process is helping them connect with country and share cultural knowledge along the way.
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00:00 From mountainous forests to coral reefs, this tropical island draws hundreds of thousands
00:07 of visitors to its shores every year.
00:10 It's a place where they can retire, live, work, enjoy.
00:14 But a group of traditional owners is taking its efforts to protect and preserve Magnetic Island to new heights.
00:21 Known as the Yumbinan Land and Sea Rangers, they're learning skills to defend against climate change,
00:28 erosion and coral bleaching.
00:31 We're on the third largest port. We've got a big channel that's running through here.
00:35 We have one major incident, oil spill, it can destroy half the island.
00:40 From mapping the coastline with drones to learning to open water dive to study coral and seagrass.
00:46 We've got plenty of dugongs around here. We also get to see a lot of whales.
00:53 With the help of the local community, they've spent over 2,000 hours monitoring local habitats.
01:00 But one of the most important jobs is preserving cultural sites hidden to many visitors.
01:06 Some burial sites, we just want to look after that because that's our history.
01:12 The project is also helping share cultural land management skills with other First Nations Rangers along the Queensland coast.
01:20 All our men's business, which is a big thing as well.
01:24 So there's heaps of stuff that I do not know about law, but it's where we can give back.
01:30 And it's building plenty of connections closer to home.
01:33 I just consider them mates for life.
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