In time for your Xmas reading! SERA (Society for Ecological Restoration Australasia) has just released their Draft ‘NATIONAL STANDARDS FOR THE PRACTICE OF ECOLOGICAL RESTORATION IN AUSTRALIA’, which are open for comment until February 15 2015. For the last 3 years, the Society and 12 partner organizations (including Gondwana Link) have been collaborating on the development of these Standards. We’re excited to now see them ‘out there’, – a national approach recognising the fundamental ecological principles that underpin all restoration programs. The Standards will provide clarity for restoration practitioners and funders on where projects sit – will they achieve valuable restoration, or are they just hopeful tree planting in a declining landscape? We like the five star rating system, and think the restoration wheel (pictured) could work well. Gondwana Link first developed our Restoration Standards for the Link in 2010, in order to provide clarity across the loose language then being used on what works contributed to achieving the Link. That early effort was led by Paula Deegan, who then worked with SERA developing the business case for the national standards. A key driver in and contributor to development of both the Gondwana Link Standards and the National Standards has been SERA Board Member Justin Jonson, from Threshold Environmental, who has designed and implemented many high standard restoration works in the Central Zone of Gondwana Link. Member groups Greening Australia and Bush Heritage Australia also contributed as partners to the project. The National Standards can be downloaded from seraustralasia.com.