Parks Victoria has joined forces with leaders of Melbourne's diverse immigrant communities to deliver a bilingual tours program based out of Point Cook Coastal Park.

Led by Point Cook ranger John Argote, the Coastal Parks Bilingual Tour Guide course - which begins this month with 20 participants from across Melbourne - follows on from the

first project of its kind, the Parks Tours Leadership Program, launched in 2007.

Mr Argote, who learned Spanish for the course two years ago, will train up community leaders over 10 weeks, equipping them with the knowledge to take their own groups out on tours of the park.

He hailed the initiative as an opportunity for migrants to see Australian flora and fauna.

"The bilingual tours enable migrants, who might not otherwise visit a Victorian park, to access their local environment.

"The wetlands in particular are a great place to bring these communities, because we take them to the observation tower where they witness migratory birds travelling from far away countries to Australia. That sense of distance and travel from a homeland really speaks to their experience."

Volunteer co-ordinator Sjaan Field said the program was a grassroots approach to engaging isolated communities in the outdoors.

"Some of these migrants, especially refugees, arrive in Australia and go straight to the suburbs or a housing commission and have no means of transport, or any incentive to visit a park.

"This program gives people a chance to get out of the urban setting and see Victoria's natural wonders, with the support and guidance of speakers of their native tongue."

She said participants in the program had spoken about the lack of knowledge refugees had of the Australian environment. "Some groups, like Africans and Russians for example, have misconceptions about Australia, and they're scared to visit a park.

"They worry about snakes and might even expect to come across animals from their homeland like tigers. There is also fear of uniform officers like park rangers.

"The leaders who complete the course are there to reassure them and create a link to the parks community."

She said a range of representatives had signed up for the course, including leaders from the Turkish Womens Group, as well as Chilean, Iraqi, Russian, and Chinese groups.