Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation

What Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation does

The Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation (ILSC) is a corporate Commonwealth entity established under the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Act 2005, founded in 1995 in the aftermath of the Mabo judgment to help Indigenous Australians reacquire and manage Country. It is headquartered in Adelaide and operates three divisional offices in Perth, Adelaide and Brisbane, covering all Australian states and territories with a workforce of approximately 100 staff. The ILSC's mandate was expanded in February 2019 to include water interests alongside land, and the entity was renamed from the Indigenous Land Corporation (ILC) to its current title.

Its core offering is the Our Country Our Future (OCOF) national funding program, which provides direct grants for purchasing, managing and developing land or water-related interests, alongside capability building and partnership brokering. Supporting programs include Disaster Recovery Quick Response Grants (capped at A$20,000 per organisation), the National Indigenous Land and Sea Strategy 2023-28 (NILSS), Sector Leadership Future Industries Initiatives, the Real Jobs Program, Savanna Fire Management, Indigenous Protected Areas partnerships, and the Knowledge Hub online resource platform. A new Future Industries Initiatives Grant Program was launched in May 2025 covering carbon, renewables, environmental markets and aquaculture.

The ILSC receives an annual payment of approximately A$45 million derived from investment returns of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Land and Sea Future Fund. It does not sell commercial products; instead, it operates as a grant-making body with a sales-led, regionally distributed go-to-market model anchored in community engagement and structured EOI processes. Following the NILSS 2023-28 strategy, the entity has been divesting operating subsidiaries — divesting Primary Partners/Roebuck Export Depot in March 2024 and completing the sale of Voyages Indigenous Tourism Australia in March 2026 — to refocus on its core funding and advisory mandate.

Name

Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation

Legal name

Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation

Website

https://ilsc.gov.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

1995

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

The Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation is an Australian Commonwealth entity that provides grants and support to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples to acquire and manage land, sea and water Country for economic, environmental, social and cultural benefit.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Indigenous Land and Sea Management Services

NAICS

American Indian and Alaska Native Tribal Governments (921150), Public Administration (92)

akta.pro primary industry

Coastal & Marine Resources Administration (Oceans, Fisheries, Shorelines) (BPAIAMAI)

akta.pro secondary industry

United Nations System & Specialized Agencies (BPADAAAA)

Keywords

• Indigenous land management
• Native title funding
• Indigenous grants
• Country acquisition
• First Nations support

Headquarters

HQ city

Adelaide

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Annual Government Funding: The ILSC receives an annual payment of approximately $45 million derived from investment returns of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Land and Sea Future Fund. This is the primary revenue source for all ILSC operations and grant programs.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation (ILSC) provides grant funding, capability building, and advisory services to assist Indigenous Australians and Indigenous-owned corporations to acquire and manage interests in land, salt water and fresh water country (collectively "Country"). It operates national funding programs that deliver economic, environmental, social, and cultural benefits to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples across Australia.

Product overview

The Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation (ILSC) operates as a corporate Commonwealth entity established under the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Act 2005. The organization functions primarily as a funding and grants body rather than a technology product company. Its core product is the Our Country Our Future (OCOF) national funding program, which operates alongside Disaster Recovery Quick Response Grants, the National Indigenous Land and Sea Strategy framework, and the Sector Leadership Future Industries Initiatives. Supporting programs include the Real Jobs Program, Savanna Fire Management, Indigenous Traineeships and Cadetship, and the Knowledge Hub platform. The ILSC's operations span across urban, regional, and remote areas of Australia through three divisional offices (Western, Central, Eastern), managing land and water-related acquisitions and providing funding for Indigenous economic, environmental, social, and cultural benefits.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Our Country Our Future (OCOF)
• Disaster Recovery Quick Response Grants
• National Indigenous Land and Sea Strategy (NILSS) 2023-28
• Real Jobs Program
• Savanna Fire Management
• Knowledge Hub
• Indigenous Traineeships and Cadetship Program
• Future Industries Initiatives Grant Program
• Sector Leadership Future Industries Initiatives
• Indigenous Protected Areas Partnership

Quantifiable outcome

• Indigenous employment at Ayers Rock Resort increased from 1% to 32% of workforce following ILSC ownership
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered strategic, core and major.

• First Nations Organisations (Canada and Australia)strategicStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 November 2023Historic Memorandum of Understanding signed in November 2023 between ILSC and First Nations organisations in Canada and Australia to address global Indigenous economic exclusion.
• Birriman-gan Common Law HolderscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 July 2022In July 2022, the ILSC was appointed as an agent Prescribed Body Corporate (PBC) for the Birriman-gan native title holders of the Kimberley region, WA - the first time this role was invoked since 1993.
• Indigenous Landholder ServicecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Originally established as Kimberley Indigenous Management Support Services (KIMSS) in 2003, delivers extension services and land management funding across six large regions of WA and around 70 Indigenous-owned properties.
• Commonwealth Department of the EnvironmentmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 1995Partnership established in January 2005 for developing Indigenous Protected Areas (IPAs), with the ILC entering a three-year partnership to develop at least 10 new IPAs. By 2009, 19 IPAs were declared through this collaboration.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights2 records

Direct peers

• Central Land Council: Statutory land council covering Central Australia (NT). Performs analogous land management, native title, and Traditional Owner representation functions as ILSC, especially across ILSC's Central divisional territory.
• Northern Land Council: Statutory land council under the Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act representing Traditional Owners across northern NT. Direct comparable in Indigenous land acquisition, management, and native title representation.
• Indigenous Business Australia: Australian Commonwealth statutory body supporting Indigenous economic participation through commercial enterprises, loans, and capacity building. Operates under similar federal framework with comparable Indigenous-targeted mandate and federal funding model.
• Kimberley Land Council: Statutory Aboriginal land council for the Kimberley region of WA. Direct comparable given ILSC's Birriman-gan PBC appointment and Indigenous Landholder Service operations in this region.
• Torres Strait Regional Authority: Australian statutory authority for the Torres Strait Islander region with mandate covering land, sea, cultural, and economic matters for Traditional Owners. Direct comparable given its specific focus on Torres Strait sea-country management.
• Queensland South Native Title Services: Native title services body representing Traditional Owners across southern Queensland. Direct comparable in native title rights management, PBC support, and Traditional Owner representation.
• National Native Title Council of Australia: Peak body representing Native Title Representative Bodies (including NLC, CLC, KLC) and Prescribed Bodies Corporate. Direct comparable in Indigenous governance and native title rights management.

Broad incumbents

• Indigenous Services Canada: Canadian federal department delivering programs and services to First Nations, Inuit, and Métis. Broader incumbent with overlapping Indigenous-focused mandate but operates as full federal department rather than specialist land/sea corporation.

Regional players

• Te Tumu Paeroa: New Zealand independent trustee organisation managing Māori-owned land and perpetuities. Comparable in function (Indigenous land administration and protection) but operates in Aotearoa New Zealand under different treaty framework.
• First Nations Land Management Resource Centre Inc. Canadian non-profit supporting First Nations transition from Crown land management to self-governance under the Framework Agreement on First Nation Land Management. Comparable mandate but operates in Canadian legal/policy context.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/IndigLandSea
• Facebookfacebook.com/IndigenousLandAndSeaCorporation
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/indigenous-land-and-sea-corp

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Subsidiaries5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation