On The Fence (Dingoes)

Dingoes are now listed as vulnerable to extinction by the ICUN with many experts believing their true status is critically endangered. Dingoes play a crucial role in Australia’s delicate ecosystems in eliminating feral animals and with the highest rate of extinction anywhere across the globe, the role that Dingoes play is more important now more than ever.

Since colonisation, Dingoes or “wild dogs” have been hunted, hung from trees, trapped and poisoned in catastrophic numbers. Since the 1800’s the Australian Government has run a cruel, indiscriminate and ineffective Dingo eradication program that has proven to be an incredibly expensive failure. Dingoes are culturally significant to many First Nations people and cultures. On The Fence intends to provide another platform to hear some of these stories, such as those from Jirrbal Rainforest, and holistically showcase the impacts that the persecution of this species has on people, culture, and the environment.

Through On The Fence I want to show the audience the cruel and dated practices that are still in place today, decommission the dingo fence by offering farmers and landowners alternative dingo management strategies and list the Dingo as a native species and thus affording it protection. On The Fence aims to challenge perceptions around the role of apex predators, reframing them as crucial to maintain healthy ecosystems, and a healthy country, particularly in this age of ecological crisis.

Short term
Education through audiences watching the film and following the project afterwards to support the conservation of dingoes.
Shifting people away from using the term ‘wild dog’ when describing a dingo as this is an easy way that killing dingoes has been justified in the past.

Medium term
Change.org page to begin building momentum towards listing dingoes as a native species thus protecting them.
Social media education campaigns that can be shared easily and are evergreen.

Long term
Build enough momentum, support and demand for change which results in the decommissioning of the dingo fence. This will allow for drastic environmental benefits on a huge scale.
Offer farmers and landowners non-lethal dingo management strategies allowing them to continue their practices without slaughtering countless dingoes.

Defend The Wild – Advocates for the Victorian government to remove the wild-dog livestock protection buffer, which allows the lethal control of dingoes within their natural habitat, and instead divert funding used for lethal control to support co-existence between farmers and dingoes.

Taronga Conservation Society Australia – TCSA fund and support the Myall Lakes Dingo project that aims to work on non-lethal Dingo management techniques.

Dave Wooleen – Owner of Wooleen Station in rural WA, Dave inherited his family’s cattle farm that had a long history of baiting and shooting Dingoes but he has now reintroduced dingoes onto his property.

Clark McGhie – An avid “dogger”, Clark spends his days hunting Dingoes for landowners and farmers in rural QLD. He has a successful YouTube channel that aims to educate people on what is involved to lower Dingo numbers. He was also once the proud owner of a Dingo that he hand raised after shooting its mother and the remaining litter.

Signing petitions – There are sections of my film that I know the audience will find shocking. The final cut will be appropriate for all audiences, however I still want to have a lasting impact on the audience through the confronting way that Dingoes are managed in Australia. Because of this, I believe people will want change. I will have a petition linked on my website that I will share a QR code at the end of the movie offering the audience the opportunity to sign. This petition will then be shared with relevant authorities to show that there is a demand for change.

Support through social media – I have already built a small following for On The Fence; through social media channels. The majority of this audience are dedicated ecologists, scientists and people who are passionate about this country. Because of this foundation of support, I believe social media will be a very effective tool to share the message of On The Fence.

Writing to politicians to change policies