Benefits to People
During the period of economic recovery from COVID-19, there is scope for tens of thousands of skilled and unskilled workers to be employed in the conservation and land management sector.
This program would provide important opportunities for safe, meaningful and socially beneficial work during the period of economic recovery, while leaving enduring benefits for the environment, local communities, tourism and farm businesses.
Benefits to Tourism
Public investment in conservation and land management work presents opportunities to restore and enhance natural tourism assets (e.g. restoring visitor infrastructure and natural habitats destroyed by bushfire; tracks and trails in national parks; monitoring and restoring coastal and marine habitats).
There may be opportunities for tourism businesses to diversify their income during the economic recovery period. For example, marine tourism operators would be well placed to provide boats, dive equipment and skilled workers for marine research and habitat restoration activities on the Great Barrier Reef.
In regional centres hard-hit by the downturn in tourism, this investment would provide people with the dignity of work, support them to remain actively involved in their community and provide a pathway back into long-term work as tourism and other key economic sectors recover from the impacts of COVID-19.
By scaling up existing successful conservation programs during
the economic recovery period, we can leave a lasting legacy for
nature, enhance the resilience of rural landscapes, promote our iconic natural assets and highlight the tourism industry’s long-term commitment to environmental sustainability.