Throughout the world, Victoria has been recognised for over a decade as the premier state in Australia for the protection and enhancement of its biodiversity assets. It has the nation's most comprehensive reserve system forming the cornerstone for the sustainable use of Victoria's terrestrial, freshwater and marine ecosystems. In 2020, these 'jewels in Victoria's crown' are highly valued by the local community and international visitors.

As our understanding of the biodiversity of Victoria increased many 'conservation' issues were resolved because there was an increased awareness of what each component added to the health of the environment. Biodiversity conservation had been fully incorporated into all planning processes and the role of plants and animals in maintaining beneficial natural processes, for example nutrient recycling, was universally understood. Intensive studies on our threatened species and communities over many years has led to increased protection and recovery of many of these species and communities. Some knowledge gained from these studies gave us deeper insights into the nature of living in Victoria, while some Victorian plants have contributed to new pharmaceutical discoveries.

There have been many visual changes over the past 20 years, one of the most notable of which is that native vegetation has been restored along almost 90 per cent of the rivers and streams. This has dramatically extended wildlife habitats both on the banks and in the stream while the water quality of most of our rivers and streams has markedly improved.

The quality and quantity of our freshwater resources were recognised in the 1990s as one of the primary limiting factors in the Victorian environment and some sectors of the economy. These resources are now being very carefully managed to maximise biodiversity outcomes for catchments and for the bays and estuaries to which they flow. In the urban landscape Victorians have learnt that better water conservation and recycling alleviates the need for additional dams despite the substantial increase in population.

In the rural landscape, programs such as Landcare and Land for Wildlife, begun more than 30 years ago, have taken deep root in the community, where most people now view the conservation of biodiversity as part of their everyday lives. Conservation custodianship has been internalised as a result of this ground-breaking work. Over this period, urban Victorians began to take a greater interest in their local areas and in the rural landscape of Victoria. This trend was assisted through the expanding 'Friends Groups' which gave urban people the opportunity for direct involvement in conservation activities in significant areas.

This generation of rural and urban Victorians have a deeper appreciation of and empathy for the landscape, its biodiversity and its place in their quality of life than had the previous generation.

The historical loss of native vegetation was reversed by the turn of the millennium and Victoria has for 20 years been in a situation of net gain. The pivotal 'net increase' goal was introduced as part of the State/Commonwealth partnership under the Natural Heritage Trust program in 1997. The gains were achieved through improving the health of existing remnants and by strategic revegetation. Through restoration in 'biolinks' Victoria had obtained an international reputation for ameliorating the potentially adverse effects of the enhanced greenhouse effect on biodiversity. The quality of native vegetation and habitat has also improved since natural resource management regimes shifted to an ecologically sustainable basis.

Victorian forest products are now sought after in the high value markets as being proven to be 'grown green'. In the rural landscape, the wine industry in Victoria led the way in environmental quality assurance, achieving a strategic advantage in the global market place. Other biodiversity assets were increasingly recognised in traditional industries; for example our native grasslands were incorporated in drought management strategies on many grazing properties. Our management of fisheries has become ecologically sustainable, and Victoria enjoys international prestige for its fully integrated approach to the management of exotic marine organisms.

The development of key biodiversity monitoring methods promoted accelerated change, allowing landholders and management agencies to assess the quality of ecological communities and measure changes over time. This was an important breakthrough, as it gave people practical tools for working out how to modify their production and conservation management practices to achieve zero or positive impacts on biodiversity. Monitoring undertaken across the State provided information that enhanced Victoria's 'clean and green' reputation, assisting all Victorian export industries and attracting international tourism.

By the end of the millennium, management of all land and water resources had agreed on definable ecological goals, which were implemented through whole-farm planning, forest agreements, the planning system and other land management planning and approval systems. One example of the change that this approach has brought is the increased use of cleared private land for plantations of native timber trees, wildflowers and bush tucker species. Strategic revegetation also helped ameliorate some of the salinity and soil degradation problems that faced Victoria.

Early in the new century it was recognised that international markets preferred and were willing to pay for natural resources, especially foods that were produced in an ecologically sustainable manner. Many Victorian industries flourished as their value-added products became known for being not only clean and green, but clean and grown green! The domestic market both responded to and promoted these trends. Many companies brought about these changes through environmental management systems which achieved and went beyond international standards in the area of biodiversity conservation. The role of the Victorian Government in supporting the early development of this approach was crucial.

In response to consumers and changing community values, leaders in all types of businesses have become genuinely committed to conservation goals and are ameliorating impacts on biodiversity. ‘Biodiversity-friendly’ has become a shared part of our quality of life. Once again, Victoria showed international leadership and developed methods for including a biodiversity component in product life-cycle analysis methods. ‘Biodiversity friendliness’ is now a standard element of product descriptions, similar to the energy efficiency ratings introduced in the 1980s.

During the past 25 years the increasing adoption of the ‘custodianship’ approach by Victorians had led to both a better quality of life and better biodiversity conservation outcomes. Now, in the year 2020, a deeper sense of place and quality of life has developed through better knowledge and understanding of and empathy with our natural heritage.