Archaeology, Cultural Landscapes, and Indigenous Knowledge in Australian Cultural Heritage Management Legislation and Practice

Cultural heritage management is now more than archaeology. There is a growing focus in cultural heritage discourse and practice on cultural landscapes and Indigenous relationships to land and sea. In this article we illustrate the value of a cultural landscapes approach to cultural heritage management by reference to a case study from North Stradbroke Island, southeast Queensland, Australia. We document the process whereby Aboriginal traditional owners and archaeologists worked collaboratively to design and implement a method for a cultural heritage assessment that met not only legislative requirements relating to archaeological sites but also Indigenous needs regarding culturally significant landscapes. Our results demonstrate that a focus purely on archaeological outcomes, which is the focal point of legislation in Queensland and in much of Australia, is inadequate for holistic heritage management. Even where no sites of archaeological significance occur there may still be places of cultural heritage value that need to be managed in accordance with appropriate Aboriginal law.