Traditional owners dedicate Wik Indigenous Protected Area

Traditional owners dedicate Wik Indigenous Protected Area Scott Kimber Tue, 22/09/2026 - 09:40 A dedication ceremony for the Wik Indigenous Protected Area (IPA) in Far North Queensland has been celebrated in Aurukun this week, strengthening the Wik Peoples’ capacity to continue caring for and managing Country and maintaining cultural knowledge for future generations. The dedication ceremony was held on Friday alongside Aak Ngampram Day, commemorating the 30th anniversary of the historic Wik High Court decision in 1996. The newly dedicated Wik IPA covers 156,213 hectares of Wik Homelands on the western Cape York Peninsula. It’s home to ecologically and culturally important ecosystems including vast expanses of wetlands and waterholes, estuaries and beaches on the Gulf of Carpentaria, savannah woodlands, and riparian rainforests. These areas are home to many migratory bird species, as well as threatened and endangered species like the Olive Ridley Turtle, sawfish, the spectacled flying fox, northern hopping mouse and northern quoll. A defining feature of the Wik IPA is its clan‑based governance model, which ensures that decision‑making authority rests with the Traditional Owners of e