‘Back from the Brink: A Protection Agenda for Nature’ is a new report by the Conservation Council of WA, calling for sweeping nature law reforms in Western Australia to halt and reverse biodiversity loss, to avoid further threatened species extinctions.
It sets out 36 recommendations for change, developed with community groups, scientists, First Nations leaders and other experts across the WA environmental movement. Alongside the recommendations, the report highlights real-life examples that link local conservation threats to the broader system failures driving biodiversity loss in WA.
Why we wrote it
Not sure why WA's nature is under threat and on the brink? Start here
Quite simply, environmental policy is WA continuing to fail and government ambition on reforms to protect threatened species has been too low for too long. We need the State Government to respond to the biodiversity crisis and ensure there can be no further extinctions.
In 2023, the WA Government reviewed the Environmental Protection Act, and in response conservation groups formed the 'Defend WA’s Nature' alliance to push for strong nature laws. In 2024, the government went ahead with the biggest changes to WA’s environmental laws in a decade, cutting red tape for industry at nature’s expense, with no real consultation with the conservation sector. Since then, CCWA’s Nature Program has worked to develop a positive plan for nature reform in WA.
Back from the Brink aims to:
- Provide a reference guide to assist decision makers, government agencies and policy makers working towards effective environmental reform, and
- Assist CCWA’s member groups and broader community groups in connecting local or specific environmental issues with policy and legislative reform, to support collective environmental advocacy.
Report contributors
This first edition was made by many people working together. Thank you to the conservation groups, Aboriginal leaders and environmental experts who shared their knowledge. See page 4-5 of the report for everyone who contributed
Report launch
The first iteration of Back from the Brink was launched on World Environment Day, Wednesday 24 June 2026, at PICA (Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts) in Boorloo (Perth). The release of the report also followed the publication of new data revealing a shocking surge in the amount of habitat approved for clearing in 2026.
The night was fully booked. Thank you to everyone who came along.
On the night, we heard from:
- Matt Roberts, Executive Director, Conservation Council of WA
- Daniel Garlett, Community and cultural leader
- Professor Kingsley Dixon AO, 2026 WA Senior Australian of the Year, botany and conservation expert
- Professor Rachel Standish, Harry Butler Institute, Murdoch University, ecological restoration expert
- Chris Tallentire, former CCWA Director and former Member of the WA Parliament, environmental consultant and business strategist
- Josie Alec, community and cultural leader (unfortunatly unable to join us on the night)
Find out more about the launch
View photos from the night
Read the media release
Thank You
Back from the Brink was made possible with the help of
- The Koorabup Trust, for funding this work
-
Irene Schneider, designer at Studio Loka, for designing the report
- PICA (Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts) for hosting our launch
- Gather Foods for the delicious catering at the launch
- Judy Blyth for designing the banner painting activity for the launch
- All our contributors, for their knowledge and time
- Everyone who shared the report