Bush Heritage Australia

Bush Heritage Australia was founded in 1990 by Bob Brown, who purchased two forested properties in Tasmania, adjoining the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Site, to save them from being woodchipped. He used the prize money from his Goldman Environmental Prize as a deposit, borrowing the rest and setting up the Australian Bush Heritage Fund.^[5]

The organization initially developed on a small scale in Tasmania before expanding to Australian mainland, and has grown with the assistance of regular supporters and other donors.^[6]

Doug Humann AM led Bush Heritage Australia as CEO from 1997 to 2011, raising its profile nationally. (As of 2021^[update] he is chair of Landcare Australia.)^[7] Gerard O'Neill served from 2011 to 2018, followed by Heather Campbell from 2019 to 2023. Rachel Lowry is the current CEO (appointed at the start of 2024).^[8]

In 1997 Bush Heritage acquired the lease of Erith Island, an island in the Kent Group, Bass Strait, used for cattle grazing. It was transferred to the Tasmanian Government in 2002 for incorporation into the Kent Group National Park.^[9]

In 2011, Bush Heritage entered into a ten-year agreement with the Wunambal Gaambera Aboriginal Corporation, described as the first long-term agreement in Australia between traditional landowners and a non-government conservation organisation. Many similar agreements have since followed. The Healthy Country Plan developed by the two groups supports managemenet of the Indigenous Protected Area (IPA) within the Mitchell River National Park of the Kimberley, Western Australia.^[10] Bush Heritage now has an extensive Aboriginal Partnerships Program.

Bush Heritage Australia is striving for the long-term protection of Australia's biodiversity through the acquisition and management of land, water and wildlife of outstanding conservation significance. To do so it focuses its attention and investment on broad 'priority landscape' regions across Australia, selected for a combination of criteria, including the number of threatened species and ecosystems, the number of endemic species, the general condition of the lands, expected climate change impacts and existing staff and resources deployed in the region. Care of Bush Heritage owned properties includes the rehabilitation of degraded land, the control of introduced herbivores and predators, the use of fire as a management tool, consultation and co-operation with neighbouring landowners and Traditional Custodians, as well as with government departments, and the creation of habitat corridors.

Bush Heritage Australia also has a conservation science program led by Bruce Webber.^[11] They study the conservation of animal and plant species.^[11][12]

Bush Heritage Australia contributes to biodiversity conservation through land acquisition, partnerships, and ecological restoration. As of 2025, the organization was involved in the protection and management of over 22.5 million hectares of land across Australia, including both owned reserves and partnership areas.^[3]

Its reserves support thousands of native species, including a significant number of threatened species. Conservation activities include habitat restoration, invasive species management, fire management, and long-term ecological monitoring.^[13]

Bush Herritage Australia works in partnership with Aboriginal and Torres Straitr Islander communities to support conservation outcomes and land stewardship.^[14] These collaborations often involve co-development of "Healthy Country Plans," which integrate ecological management with cultural and spiritual values.^[15]

Such partnerships contribute to the management of indigenous Protected Areas (IPAs) and support traditional land management. practices alongside scientific conservation approaches.

Bush Heritage is run by an independent board of directors skilled in land management and conservation, around 200 paid staff and many volunteers. In 2024-25 Bush Heritage had over 50,000 supporters and hundreds of highly skilled volunteers (contributing over 47,233 hours in 2024-25) who are given opportunities to visit and work on the reserves. Details of income and expenditure can be found in the Impact Report on its website.^[1]

As of October 2025, Bush Heritage had 46 reserves and was working with many partners contributing to the protection of 22.5 million hectares:^[1]

• Conservation in Australia
• List of threatened flora of Australia
• Threatened fauna of Australia