From Missionaries to Mabo: Place-Based Heritage Management and Native Title in Torres Strait

Nineteenth century colonialism had a major impact on the place-based heritage of Torres Strait Islanders, ranging from the destructive practices of missionaries to the collection practices of outsiders, including government officials, traders and anthropologists. Many places of significance have also been damaged or destroyed as a result of government infrastructure developments over the past half-century. While in principle native title rights and state legislation provide scope for adequate protection of place-based heritage, local native title bodies are poorly resourced to implement best-practice impact assessments of infrastructure developments and respond to the new challenges of erosion of coastal sites from sea level rise.