Dr Michael Adams

Education:

• Doctor of Philosophy
  University of Wollongong, 2001 Redefining relationships: Aboriginal interests and biodiversity conservation in Australia
• Bachelor of Landscape Architecture University of Sydney, 1988
• Bachelor of Arts (Hons)
  University of Sydney, 1978

Contact Details:

Building 41, Room G19
Ph: 02 4221 4284
Fax: 02 4221 4250
Email: madams@uow.edu.au

Brief Introduction:

Michael has carried out collaborative research with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in numerous contexts, including ‘remote’ Aboriginal and Islander communities (Cape York), and Aboriginal people from regional centres (Townsville, Bowen, Wollongong) and urban areas (Sydney). He has 20 years employment and consultancy experience with Aboriginal organisations across a spectrum of responsibilities, as well as professional roles in environment NGOs and state agencies.
In 2004 he received a Churchill Fellowship to carry out international comparative research with Indigenous people in arctic Scandinavia.
In 2007 Michael received a National Carrick Award for Teaching Excellence (in 2008 the Carrick Institute was renamed the Australian Learning and Teaching Council).
http://media.uow.edu.au/news/UOW038370.html 
http://www.altc.edu.au/carrick/go/home/awards/pid/59
In 2009 he was appointed to the World Commission on Protected Areas of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN). http://www.iucn.org/about/union/commissions/wcpa/
Also in 2009, he was appointed to UOW’s Environmental Advisory Committee. http://www.uow.edu.au/about/environment/index.html

Overview:

• Multi disciplinary academic record in Science, Humanities, and Environment and Built Environment. Teaching experience across all undergraduate and postgraduate levels, and in several disciplinary areas.
• Extensive record of publications in academic and applied fields, including geography, biodiversity conservation, Native Title mediation documents, bioregional and conservation planning reports, and technical reports and manuals in community participation and environmental management.
• Employment and consultancy experience encompassing academic institutions (University of Wollongong), public sector organisations (NSW Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water), environment NGOs (Greening Australia), and Aboriginal organisations (Cape York Land Council, Central Queensland Land Council, Settlement Neighbourhood Centre).
• Policy analysis and development, with high level input to two state governments, and national and state NGOs, focusing on environmental issues and Aboriginal interests.

Teaching:

Michael teaches and coordinates INDS201 Redefining Eden: Indigenous Peoples and the Environment. This subject examines the relationships between Indigenous knowledge, customary laws and social organisation, and the Western science of ecology, in contemporary strategies for natural resource use by Indigenous peoples. Interactions between Indigenous resource systems and Western approaches to conservation and natural resource management are examined, as well as the links between environmental impacts, policy processes and property regimes.
Michael also teaches in INDS150 Introduction to Aboriginal Australia, as well as INDS200. These are all taught to Wollongong and the South Coast and Southern Highlands campuses.
He regularly leads field trips for visiting international academics and Study Abroad students; and occasionally teaches an intensive, field-based summer short course.
Michael also teaches in the School of Earth and Environmental Sciences. He has been nominated for UOW OCTAL Teaching Awards in 2007 and 2010.

Research Interests:

Michael is a geographer, carrying out interdisciplinary and collaborative research on the cultural, spatial and policy context for relationships between indigenous peoples and conservation agencies. This includes identifying the key cross-cultural issues which inhibit effective outcomes, and relating this analysis to the spatial distribution of relevant tenures (indigenous and conservation). Michael is carrying out collaborative work with Saami reindeer herders (the Indigenous people of Fenno-Scandinavia) and Swedish academics, focusing on contested approaches to the Laponia World Heritage Area in arctic Sweden. (laponia.nu, padjelanta.com)
Recently, Michael has also been researching particular aspects of teaching and learning practice. This work builds on his National Teaching Award, and focuses on the role and value of experiential education, in particular field trips, in teaching.
Michael’s research is conducted through the Institute for Conservation Biology and Environmental Management, and he is an associate member of the Australian Centre for Cultural Environmental Research (AUSCCER), and the Centre for Archaeological Research.
Michael is also actively involved in policy development with the NSW Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water, through the Aboriginal co-management program: http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/jointmanagement/index.htm .
He is Associate Editor of the international journal, Conservation and Society (ARC A rank): http://www.conservationandsociety.org/

Professional Information:

• 2006 – present: Senior Lecturer, School of Earth and Environmental Sciences and Woolyungah Indigenous Centre, University of Wollongong.
• 2004 - 2006: Lecturer, Woolyungah Indigenous Centre, University of Wollongong.
• 2002-2004: Senior Research Fellow, Institute for Conservation Biology and Law, University of Wollongong, NSW Environmental Trusts funded project. 'Native title, land rights and biodiversity conservation in NSW’.
• 1996-2002: Conservation Assessment and Data Unit, National Parks & Wildlife Service (NSW)
• 1990-1996: Sydney Manager, Greening Australia (NSW)
• 1982-1985: Co-ordinator, Settlement Neighbourhood Centre, Redfern

Publications:

Books and monographs

• Popp, T and M. Adams 1995 Settlements of Green - a Revegetation Manual. NSW Aboriginal Land Council, Parramatta.

Chapters in edited books

• Adams, M 2010, Arctic to outback: Indigenous rights, conservation and tourism, in Günter Minnerup and Pia Solberg (eds) First World First Nations, Sussex Academic Press, East Sussex.
• Farrier, D, and M. Adams (in press), Case study of the legal framework and outcomes for Booderee National Park, for international Guidelines for Protected Areas Legislation, IUCN, Bonn Germany.
• Eriksen, C., and M. Adams 2010, Indigenous environmental knowledge, in The Encyclopedia of Geography, Sage Publications, Thousand Oaks, California.
• Adams, M., V. Cavanagh and B. Edmunds, 2008 Bush lemons and beach hauling: evolving traditions and new thinking for protected areas management and Aboriginal people in NSW, in D. Smyth and G. K. Ward (eds), Protecting Country: Indigenous governance and management of protected areas, Research Program, Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies, Canberra, eBook: http://www.aiatsis.gov.au/research/protectingcountry.html
• Adams, M 2005, Beyond Yellowstone? Conservation and Indigenous rights in Australia and Sweden, in G. Cant, A. Goodall and J. Inns (eds) Discourses and Silences: Indigenous Peoples, Risks and Resistance, Department of Geography, University of Canterbury, Christchurch.
• Adams, M and A. English 2005,‘Biodiversity is a whitefella word’: changing relationships between Aboriginal people and the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service. InL. Taylor, G. Ward, G. Henderson. R. Davis and L.A. Wallis (eds), The Power of Knowledge, The Resonance of Tradition, Aboriginal Studies Press, Canberra.

Refereed journals

• McGloin, C, A. Marshall, M. Adams 2010, Leading the way: Indigenous knowledge and collaboration at the Woolyungah Indigenous Centre, Journal of University Teaching and Learning Practice, Available at: http://ro.uow.edu.au/jutlp/vol6/iss2/4   
• Adams, M. 2008, Foundational Myths: Country and Conservation in Australia, Transforming Cultures eJournal, Vol. 3 No 1, February 2008. http://epress.lib.uts.edu.au/ojs/index.php/TfC/article/view/684/619
• Adams, M 2008, Response to Peter Thomson Interview, Transforming Cultures eJournal, Vol. 3 No 1, February 2008. http://epress.lib.uts.edu.au/ojs/index.php/TfC/article/view/690/625
• Lawrence, R and Adams, M. 2005, First Nations and the politics of Indigeneity: Australian perspectives on ‘Indigenous Peoples, Resource Management and Global Rights’, review article, Australian Geographer, Vol 36 (2) pp 265-272
• Adams, M. 2004, Negotiating nature: collaboration and conflict between Aboriginal and conservation interests in NSW, Australian Journal of Environmental Education, Vol 20 (1) pp3-11. 

Edited conference proceedings

• Adams, M 2004, Negotiating nature: new approaches to social-ecological relationships. Effective Sustainability Education Conference Proceedings, UNSW.
• Adams, M 1993 The Reconstruction and Fabrication of Native Plant Communities. Bushland in Our Cities and Suburbs, Proceedings of NSW Nature Conservation Council Seminar, Sydney.
• Adams, M 1992 Corridors of Green: Urban Revegetation Opportunities. In Common Ground, Proceedings of the Australian Institute of Landscape Architects National Conference, Brisbane.
• Adams, M and E. Hampel 1990 Roadside vegetation. In Environmental Conference Proceedings, NSW Roads and Traffic Authority, Sydney.

Reports 

• Adams, M., V. Cavanagh, L. Waddell, 2007, Aboriginal Partnerships Audit, Report to Parks and Wildlife Division, NSW Department of Environment and Climate Change.
• Adams, M. 2004, A comparative analysis of indigenous peoples’ interests and national park issues in arctic Sweden, Report to the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust of Australia (pdf)
• Head, L, D. Trigger and E. Woodward 2004, Nature, Culture and the challenges of environmental sustainability: Bridging the science/humanities divide, Adams was a collaborator in this ARC funded project, and a contributor to this publication.
• Adams, M (2003) From the Mountain to the Ocean’s Edge: Aboriginal culture and landscapes in the Illawarra, Report to NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service, Sydney.
• Johnston, R and M. Adams 2001 Guthalungra Landuse and Management Planning Report: Preparation for Native Title Mediation. Confidential Report to Central Queensland Land Council, Mackay.
• Johnston, R and M. Adams 2000 Aboriginal Interests in the Lake Eyre Basin. Confidential Report to Lake Eyre Basin Co-ordinating Group, Longreach.
• Adams, M 2000 Draft Plan of Management for proposed Silver Plains-Macilwraith Range National Park. Confidential Report to Cape York Land Council, Cairns.
• NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service 1997 Urban Bushland Biodiversity Survey, 6 volumes. NSW National Parks & Wildlife Service, Sydney [author of one volume, editor of full report, co-ordinator of project].
• Lean, B and M. Adams 1995 The vegetation, its faunal associations, and past and present Aboriginal resources in the Parklea area, for Department of Archaeology and Paleoanthropology, University of New England, Armidale.

Films

• Aboriginal Illawarra: culture and landscape 2003
  Sixty minute and ten minute videos, directed by Andrew Lawrence, produced by Michael Adams.
• Guthalungra 2000
  Video used in Native Title mediation. Directed by Andrew Lawrence, produced by Michael Adams.

Conference Presentations

Evaluating joint management, invited paper,Healthy Parks Healthy People International Congress, Melbourne, April 2010.

• Sacred landscapes in secular society, paper presented to 15th International Symposium on Society and Resource Management, Vienna, Austria, July 2009.
• Sharing space: outdoor education, resilience and sustainability, paper presented to 4th International Outdoor Education Conference, Beechworth, Victoria, April 2009.
• Laponia and Uluru: Indigenous rights and Western trends in conservation, Northern Europe and its Indigenous Minorities: Pointers for Australia?, Centre for European Studies Conference, UNSW, July 2007.
• Indigenous peoples in the C21st, invited presentation, Kiama High School Reconciliation Assembly, Kiama NSW, June 2007.
• Sacred Geography: contested and complementary approaches to land and culture, invited paper, Conserving Heritage, Connecting Cultures Conference, NSW Department of Environment and Climate Change Cultural Heritage Division, Sydney, June 2007.
• Foundational myths: conservation and country in Australia, invited paper, ARC Asia Pacific Futures Network project: India-Australia: cross border communications through media, environment and people, workshop, UTS, October 2006. Led field trip for visiting eminent Indian researchers.
• Arctic to outback: Indigenous rights and Western trends in conservation, International Geographical Union Conference, Brisbane, July 2006.
• Negotiating nature: new approaches to social- ecological relationships, XI World Congress of Rural Sociology, Trondheim Norway, 2004.

Memberships

• World Commission on Protected Areas (member)
• Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (member)
• Institute of Australian Geographers (co-convenor, Indigenous Studies Working Group)
• International Geographical Union Commission on Indigenous Peoples and Rights (member)

Grants:                                  

2010	Dept of Environment, Climate Change & Water	$10,000
2009	IUCN Consultancy (with Professor David Farrier): Case study of the legal framework and outcomes for Booderee National Park, for international Guidelines for Protected Area Legislation, IUCN, Bonn Germany (plus workshop in Bonn, July 2009).	$4,000
	UOW Community Engagement Grant Scheme: Art for Country: contemporary Aboriginal Art of the South Coast. – Aboriginal art and environment (with Garry Jones).	$9,968
2008	NSW Department of Environment & Climate Change, Research Agreement	$10,000
2007	Carrick Award for Teaching Excellence ESDF Grant with Dr Nick Gill	$25,000 $14,000
2006	UoW Teaching and Learning Fund grant for WIC academic team	$32,000
	NSW Department of Environment and Conservation Commercial Research Agreement	$6,000
2004	University of Wollongong Strategic International Links Grant. For further comparative research with Indigenous Saami reindeer herders in Laponia, arctic Sweden.	$6,500
	Churchill Fellowship. For international comparative research in indigenous/conservation issues in arctic Sweden	$15,000
2002-04	NSW Environmental Trusts Research Grant (with Professor Rob Whelan and Professor David Farrier)	$145,000
	NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service research support	$56,000
1998-2000	ARC-SPIRT Postgraduate Scholarship (with Associate Professor Lesley Head)	$62,000
1999	ANU Centre for Cross Cultural Research - Visiting Scholars Program	$2,500

Research Students

Garry Jones, PhD, 'Art of Engagement', co-supervised, ANU, current.

Marilyn Omerovic-Legg, PhD, ‘Environmental Histories of the Illawarra', co-supervised with Dr Georgine Clarsen, current.

Heather Moorcroft, PhD, ‘Comparative study of Indigenous Protected Areas in Australia’, co-supervised with Professor Lesley Head and Dr Jack Baker, current.

Robert Evitt, MSc, ‘Aboriginal culture, fire and climate change in northern NSW', co-supervised with Professor Lesley Head, current.

Amanda Baldwin, graduated 2010, MSc, ‘Sea eagles at Jervis Bay’, co-supervised with Professor Lesley Head.

Ella Ryan, graduated 2010, BSc Honours First Class '‘We are refugees in our own country’: an analysis of activist support of the Alyawarr Walk-Off opposing the Northern Territory Intervention', co-supervised withAssociate Professor Gordon Waitt.

Tom Nagle, graduated 2010, BSc Honours First Class, ‘Hands-on Montague: Ecotourism on a Nature Reserve’, co-supervised withAssociate Professor Gordon Waitt.

Glenn Willcox, graduated 2009, BA Honours 2/1, ‘Significant Silence: Balawan and the Cultural Heritage Management of Mount Imlay National Park'.

Bridget Edmunds, graduated 2008, BSc Honours First Class, 'Aboriginal Fisheries on the NSW South Coast', co-supervised with Professor Lesley Head.

Vanessa Cavanagh, graduated 2007, BSc Honours First Class, 'The NSW Threatened Species Conservation Act in the Bundjalung Aboriginal Nation', co-supervised with Associate Professor Gordon Waitt.