The creation of that sanctuary zone was thanks to the tireless work of a relatively small group of people. Part of a much larger series of areas scattered up and down the coast where I live. Decisions driven by locals and made by governments not so long ago has helped to alter the course of our future and safeguarded a nursery that will keep providing fish given we’re respectful and only take what we need.

Statement and language by Uncle Rick Cook, Marcus Ferguson and Oliver Costello

History is calling.

We’ve worked with the crew at Living Lab Northern Rivers to curate a series of talks focusing on flood mitigation and how we can do things differently here in the Northern Rivers.

The ancient forests of towering Wudjeh (Red Cedar), Booyong, Cudgerie and countless other species covered an area just larger than Singapore with a canopy so thick that the sun rarely reached the forest floor.

A number of factors including weather phenomena, landscape & natural resource management led to the 2022 flood event in the Richmond River catchment. We dive into the facts, referencing various case studies from the Independent NSW flood inquiry.

Lennox Point remained in a degraded state for over a century until the Ballina Environmental Society inspired the planting of two plots above Pat Morton lookout in the 1980s. It was an effort conducted almost entirely by community members, with occasional assistance from the government sector – mostly in the way of contributing funding.

One of the most important conservation actions in the last few decades in the Northern Rivers was the creation of the Cape Byron Marine Park. It extends 37km from the Brunswick River in the north to Lennox Headland in the south and also includes the tidal waters of the Brunswick River and its tributaries.

We spoke to Lauren early in 2023 about the Brunswick River, PCFML’s River Warriors program (to which RTNR donated $500) and ask her our favourite question: “What’s your favourite Northern Rivers species?”

We speak to Cassie Price - Director of Habitat Programs at OzFish - about aquatic ecosystems, the Tuckean Swamp restoration and why she’s on a mission to make swamps great again.

Jeremy Stewart has penned a brief article about how a functioning upper catchment floodplain can be observed - using Protestors Falls as his subject.

Brendan Cox is a river ecologist who studies at Southern Cross University in Lismore. He’s a recent recipient of one a grant funded by Southern Cross University that focuses on community engagement in the post-flood recovery.

His project? Click through to find out more:

Southern Cross University recently announced the grant receipients for a bunch of community engagement projects related to flood recovery. Mandy’s proposal was one of the seven recipients so we thought we’d ask her a few questions about what she has planned. Read on to hear about her upcomig project, Mandy’s connection to the Richmond River and her favourite species in the region.

Last week we hosted our screenings of RIVER at Pearces Creek Hall & Byron School of Art. Thanks to the wonderful sound engineering from Louis Muller (who also took these photos) we were treated to a masterpiece of sight and sound.

We chat to Saltwater Budawang Yuin woman Eliza Salvatori about the complexities of giving legal personhood to rivers and the potential implications for First Nations communities.

A quick breakdown of how we allocated donations from our flood recovery fund.

North Lismore resident Lucy Wise writes on day 26 after Lismore floods.

We’re honoured to be included in a list of organisations from across the world as a partner in the UN Restoration Decade. What changes from here for RTNR? The answer is: not much. We want to maintain focus on the diverse yet compromised ecosystems across the Northern Rivers region on Bundjalung, Yaegl, Githabul and Gumbaynggirr Country. There’s lots of work to do.

Woah, what a year eh? It’s crazy for us to think that Revive the Northern Rivers didn’t exist at the start of 2021.