Ripple100/GettyIn the Kimberley, Martuwarra – also called the Fitzroy River – is far more than a waterway.It is one of Australia’s largest and most intact river systems. It flows about 730 kilometres from the central Kimberley to King Sound in the north of Western Australia. Martuwarra supports plants, animals, wetlands, floodplains and communities across a catchment of about 94,000 square kilometres. For Traditional Custodians, Martuwarra is living water. It is Cultural identity connected by Country, kin, knowledge and responsibility.Many species and ecological communities hold deep cultural, spiritual and livelihood importance for Indigenous peoples. Sometimes known as Totems, these Culturally significant entities are not always animals. They may also be plants, landscapes, waters or other parts of the living world that make up Country. Their meaning depends on Country, culture, family, community and the Knowledge systems to which they belong. But they are rarely acknowledged in national policy, planning or conservation management systems. And this is what environmental management can miss when it sees nature only through categories such as species, habitats, resources or water allocations.Making cultural values visibleMartuwarra is one of the case studies in our project, Recognising Culturally Significant Entities. Led by Aboriginal researchers and guided by Traditional Custodians, the project makes Indigenous cultural values more visible in environmental management.Australia has systems for identifying threatened species and ecological communities. These are based on their extinction risk using evidence-based criteria. These are important, but they do not always capture why a species, place or ecosystem matters to Indigenous peoples.Martuwarra is a powerful example. The Fitzroy River catchment in the West Kimberley is recognised as a National Heritage Place and the longest registered Aboriginal Cultural Heritage site in WA. It supports threatened, migratory and priority-listed species, as well as nationally and internationally important wetlands. But its cultural significance cannot be understood through ecological listings alone.Martuwarra connects people to Country and holds a detailed knowledge system. It tells people when it is time to move, hunt and conduct ceremony. It is central to kinship connections and the shared responsibility to care for the river. When a culturally significant species or place is damaged, the loss can affect more than biodiversity. It can also affect language, cultural practice, teaching and community wellbeing.What are Culturally significant entities?Culturally significant entities are the species and ecological communities to which Indigenous peoples attribute cultural value. They are vital to their relationship with Country. They may include animals, plants or ecosystems connected to Totems. They may also be bush foods, tools, cultural materials, or indicators of the health of Country.Ecological values are often considered in conservation planning, but cultural values are consistently recognised. This means important species, places and ecological communities can be overlooked, especially when not listed as threatened.Our project has helped develop Australia’s first nationally consistent framework for recognising Culturally significant entities. It encourages governments, researchers and others to ask what a species or place means to people of this Country. How should those values be considered in decisions about its future? A rare, wild glossy black cockatoo in flight. Kristian Bell/Getty Cultural authority mattersA key framework principle is that cultural significance cannot be defined from the outside. Only Traditional Custodians and Indigenous Knowledge holders with authority for Country can determine what is culturally significant.Cultural knowledge is located in place. The same species, plant, river or landscape may hold different meanings, stories or responsibilities in different places.Our project was developed through partnerships with Indigenous Knowledge holders and Traditional Owners. This meant cultural values were identified through Indigenous-led processes rather than imposed or simplified by others.Alongside the framework, we developed case studies from across Australia. These recognise cultural values alongside ecological data, demonstrating the importance of knowledge, kin and Country. These include animals such as black cockatoos, coastal emus, dingoes, frogs, green turtles, humpback whales, Murray cod, sugarbag bees and western grey kangaroos. It also includes plants and places such as black bean, red mulga, Fitzroy River Country, Macquarie Marshes and waterholes.Together, they show why conservation needs to consider more than ecological data. A species, plant, landscape or waterway may be culturally vital, even if it is not rare or formally threatened.A fuller picture of conservationAustralia’s species and ecosystems are under pressure from pressure such as habitat loss, invasive species, climate change and development.For Martuwarra, these threats also include mining and gas extraction, intensive agriculture and irrigation.Our framework gives governments, researchers and conservation organisations a clearer way to recognise the species, ecological communities and places that matter for cultural reasons.By recognising these, conservation can better reflect relationships between people, culture and place. It also support decisions that protect what matters to Country and communities.Teagan Shields receives funding from National Environmental Science Program. Anne Poelina receives funding from Australian Research Council Stephen van Leeuwen receives funding from NESP Resilient Landscape Hub and ARC Training Centre for Healing Country.Member of the Conservation Council of Western Australia's Aboriginal Advisory Panel.Anna-Sheree Krige does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.