Murujuga Aboriginal Corporation ranger Jade Churnside has long held aspirations to open a nursery in the Pilbara that grows native species to help re-vegetate Country.

So it was no surprise a recent tour of a nursery where seedlings for Woodside's Native Reforestation Project are grown "blew her away".

Along with fellow MAC ranger Caleb Pitt-Cook, the duo travelled from Karratha to Perth and spent an afternoon with supplier Nativ Carbon learning more about nursery operations and native species.

A proud botany enthusiast, Ms Churnside said the behind-the-scenes nursery visit had a momentous impact on her vision and appreciation for large nursery operations.

"As Caleb said to me on the day, 'I look like a kid in a candy store'," she said.

"I think that really captures how I was feeling in the moment.

"The visit gave me a good glimpse in to the operations of a large nursery, as well as an insight into the amount of effort it takes to run and maintain an operation like that.

Ms Churnside the site visit had provided much inspiration and plenty of food for thought about her native nursery vision for Murujuga.

"That makes me excited for the future," she said.

Woodside Energy last year planted approximately 2.7 million mixed biodiverse seedlings in Western Australia as part of its Native Reforestation Project, which has so far resulted in more than 10,000 hectares of native trees and shrubs being planted to help restore and reinvigorate land.

Woodside said it hopes its reforestation initiative would sequester approximately 2,000 kt CO₂-e over 25 years, with Australian Carbon Credit Units from the project used to offset Woodside's carbon emissions.

The reforestation of land has seen increased habitat connectivity via restored landscape linkages but also provided employment opportunities for the local community and rangers.

MAC rangers like Mr Pitt-Cook have opportunites to acquire a range of qualifications related to Country and Sea, including open-water diving tickets and recreational skipper authority.

Learning to maintain culture and its practices is something that I want to learn and pass on," said Mr Pitt-Cook, who only recently joined MAC's Murujuga Land and Sea Unit.

"Now having the opportunity to learn first-hand is unreal," he said.

"Also just being a positive role model in the community is priceless, you know? Showing all the younger kids there is a way other than mining in the area."

The Murujuga cultural landscape of 100,000ha covers the Dampier Archipelago, Burrup Peninsula and surrounding sea country and is nominated for World Heritage Listing.

Murujuga means 'hip bone sticking out' in reference to the shape of the Burrup Peninsula, where MAC is located, and the Dampier Archipelago in the Pilbara region of WA.

MAC represents five Traditional Owner and Custodial groups; the Yaburara, Ngarluma, Mardudhunera, Yindjibarndi and Wong-Goo-Tt-Oo peoples, with the collective term for the group being Ngarda-Ngarli.

In March, MAC said it defined a new approach to agreement making in Australia after signing a Statement of Intent by the corporation, the federal, state and local governments, and major industry.

MAC chairperson Peter Hicks said it was "a proud moment for Ngarda Ngarli, because – even though our connection to Murujuga country has persisted more than 50,0000 years – the legal framework has not previously included the Traditional Owners and Custodians of Murujuga as decision-makers".

"The signing is a step towards forming a Heads of Agreement, that will ensure MAC, as the representative body for Murujuga Traditional Owners and Custodians, and the cultural authority for the Murujuga Cultural Landscape, is on an equal footing in future decision-making about land use on Murujuga country," he said.

The agreement replaces existing Commonwealth Conservation Agreements formed between the federal government and industry, and will provide a framework that will guide how all parties engage with MAC in matters relating to Murujuga country.

The agreement would support MAC's nomination for World Heritage Listing of the Murujuga Cultural Landscape, by demonstrating co-existence and co-management of Murujuga by MAC with government and industry.

"As far as we know, this is the first time in Australia that government and industry have agreed to work towards a Heads of Agreement such as this. It's therefore an important moment for First Nations peoples around the country," Mr Hicks told the National Indigenous Times in March.