Public interest in Indigenous fire management practices like ‘cool burning’ has grown significantly in the wake of Australia’s unprecedented bushfire crisis. But what is cool burning, and what does the attention it has received tell us about how Indigenous knowledge is valued in Australia? On this episode of Policy Forum Pod, Dr Virginia Marshall and Dr Annick Thomassin join us to talk about the impact of the bushfires on Aboriginal people, why Indigenous knowledge should be central to policy-making, and the state of reconciliation in Australia.Annick Thomassin is a Post-doctoral Fellow at the ANU Centre for Aboriginal Economic Policy Research. She is the primary investigator of the Seachange: Aboriginal marine pathways to social inclusion project, a grassroots, research-action initiative developed in collaboration with Mogo and Batemans Bay Local Aboriginal Land Councils.Virginia Marshall is an Inaugural Indigenous Postdoctoral Fellow with the ANU School of Regulation and Global Governance (RegNet) and the Fenner School of Environment and Society.Sue Regan is a PhD Scholar and tutor at Crawford School of Public Policy. Previously, Sue was Chief Executive of the Resolution Foundation, a UK-based research institute focusing on the well-being of low earners.Policy Forum Pod is available on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, and wherever you get your podcasts. We’d love to hear your feedback for this podcast series! Send in your questions, comments, or suggestions for future episodes to podcast@policyforum.net. You can also Tweet us @APPSPolicyForum or find us on Facebook.If you’d like to help with the recovery effort or contribute to firefighting services, here’s how you can donate to bushfire appeals. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.