Building resilience, response and recovery backed by research were discussed as ways to balance the impact of emergencies on communities at the Emergency Management Conference (EMC) 2024 in Melbourne this June.
Leading the conversation in innovative ways to build resilience among younger community members was Neil Munro (CFA/Safer Together) presenting Schools in Fire Country program for upper-primary school children.
Supported by Natural Hazards Research Australia research, Schools in Fire Country is a place-based, curriculum-aligned bushfire education program for Victorian upper primary school students. Built on evidence-based approaches and multi-agency, cross-sector collaborative partnerships, the program empowers students with the knowledge and skills they need to navigate the complexities of bushfire risk management in their households, schools and communities. The initiative has been so successful that additional schools in Victoria are now implementing the Schools in Fire Country program, while federal funding from the National Emergency Management Agency has been received to further build capability and capacity for scalable and sustainable implementation.
National Indigenous Disaster Resilience Project Lead at Fire to Flourish and Centre researcher, Bhiamie Williamson spoke about the disproportionate impact and effects of natural hazards on Australia’s First Nations population and communities. He stated the case for Indigenous-led and centred research addressing this inequity and ensuring First Nations people are safer, more resilient and sustainable in the face of increasing and more frequent natural hazards.
The Centre had a popular booth in the trade exhibition through the two day conference.