Drone technology and Indigenous Australians: A scan of current uses

Indigenous peoples around the world are increasingly using drones in diverse ways, from protection and preservation of traditional lands to participatory mapping and countermapping, supporting existing knowledge practices for land stewardship, filmmaking and storytelling. In Australia, some thematic drone research has been undertaken on topics such as data protocols and individual land stewardship cases, but very little work has examined how Indigenous peoples and organisations are using drones more broadly and the diversity of applications. This report presents the findings from a 12-month research project that investigated Indigenous drone use in Australia, aiming to better understand Indigenous peoples’ perspectives on and experiences with using this technology. The team interviewed 9 participants (including 4 Indigenous participants) across 6 Australian jurisdictions. The project was commissioned by Director UQ Drone Research Platform, Associate Professor Steve Micklethwaite, and undertaken by the Centre for Social Responsibility in Mining (CSRM).

Language: English

Publisher: Centre for Social Responsibility in Mining

Region: Australia

Type: Report

CITATION

Worden, S. and Holcombe, S. (2025). Drone technology and Indigenous Australians: A scan of current uses. Centre for Social Responsibility in Mining, The University of Queensland: Brisbane.

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Drone technology and Indigenous Australians: A scan of current uses