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This paper proposes a broad overview of possible responses to the challenges posed by rangelands to promote discussion on a sustainable future for these vast regions. Rangelands Australia, an organisational unit of the University of Queensland, which promotes and delivers post graduate courses in rangeland management, assesses these challenges as managing the landscapes sustainably; supporting viability for pastoralists, tourism operators and miners; and maintaining benefits to our communities. It describes the desirable triple bottom line as profitable enterprises, healthy landscapes and vibrant communities.

While there may be general agreement on these challenges and objectives, how we as a nation – and we as land managers specifically – meet them is the subject of intense debate. What is clear is that we can no longer maintain a ‘business-as-usual’ approach. We are all familiar with the effects of salinity and erosion and the impacts of feral animals and weed species. We understand the need for business in the rangelands to think smart about the environment, about markets and about communities and get smart or go under. We know that we have to do things differently or our rangeland communities will wither away as businesses fail and young people leave the bush due to lack of meaningful opportunity where they have grown up.

The experiences and observations of the Desert Knowledge Cooperative Research Centre and the new Cooperative Research Centre for Remote Economic Participation complement and bring together existing strands of activity across jurisdictions and disciplines. This synthesis of understanding offers some insights in how to conceptualise the future and act on the vision for a sustainable future for these extensive areas.