NAIDOC 2026: Victor the fire man on burning country to heal it

Tagalaka man, Victor Steffensen tells the story of the ‘walking encyclopedias’ he met in Far North Queensland — dear old men who entrusted him with their decades of cultural knowledge and taught him to apply the right traditional burn for the right environment, so Country can thrive. 

Victor advocates for small, cool fires that emit white smoke. This is something Indigenous people have done for tens of thousands of years to help Country survive and thrive.

Victor was a young man who wasn’t sure which direction to take when two elders in Far North Queensland took him under their wing.

He was hungry for knowledge and a beautiful, trusting relationship grew between the three men. 

The old men poured their expertise into Victor, who captured it all on videotape.

Today Victor teaches all around the country, using traditional methods on how to safely burn the landscape so plants, animals and people can flourish.

Further information

The Knowledge: Learning from ancestral wisdom to save our challenging global environment is published by Allen & Unwin.

This episode was produced by Alice Moldovan. The Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison. 

This episode covers Indigenous elders, cultural knowledge, doubt, backburning, bushfires, fuel load, drip torch, cool burn, mosaic burn, everything is connected, sacred knowledge, climate change, native grasses, crocodile country, knowledge sharing, Indigenous knowledge systems, NAIDOC week, lost language, mentors, Indigenous rangers, Kuranda, camping, fishing.

To binge even more great episodes of the 'Conversations podcast' with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, singers, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.