There are many changes occurring in rural and regional communities in the Murray-Darling Basin as a result of climate change, water availability, water trading, global markets, population movements and ongoing social changes. Basin communities will respond to and be affected by a range of these drivers in combination with their adaptive capacity, resilience and vulnerability.

The Australian rangelands occupy approximately three-quarters of the continent. They support diverse communities and businesses and make an important contribution to Australian society. The rangelands are landscapes where land use is dominated by pastoralism - extensive sheep and cattle grazing on native pastures. Rainfall is generally too low or too variable for dryland cropping or...