The Friends of Parks movement in Victoria began when members of the Maribyrnong Valley Committee of the Victorian National Parks Association, led by the late Don Marsh, approached the National Parks Authority to offer help to revegetate the Organ Pipes National Park which had come under the Authority’s control in 1972. The story of the OPNP appears in an article in the magazine Victoria’s Resources in ~1974. From the Friends of the Organ Pipes National Park, the Friends movement has grown to several hundred groups. (Further information about the origin can be found on the post about Friends of Wyperfeld).
A leaflet promoting the Friends as at ~2000 is available here.
A leaflet promoting the Friends of Flora and Fauna Groups is available here.
Eighth Biennial Friends Network Conference, Somers, 1997.