Queenslanders awarded for building disaster resilience

Exceptional Queenslanders strengthening disaster resilience in communities have been honoured at the state 2024 Resilient Australia Awards.

Awards were presented during a ceremony in Brisbane hosted by the Australian Institute for Disaster Resilience, with winners including:

• GIVIT (Community)
• Australian Red Cross (Community)
• Townsville City Council (Local Government)
• Aurecon, Port of Brisbane, Queensland Investment Corporation (Business)
• Queensland’s Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (Government)
• Burnett Respite Services/Carinbundi (Mental Health and Wellbeing)

These selfless and community-minded individuals have tapped into Queensland’s renowned spirit to bring about positive change in the wake of significant devastation.

As the most disaster impacted state in Australia, Queensland will continue coming face to face with natural disasters, and it’s how we respond to that adversity that makes a real and lasting difference in communities and lives.

It is vital to continue to encourage and support resilience initiatives and projects, and these awards recognise the people and organisations leading in this space. 

Highly commended awards acknowledged Southern Downs Regional Council’s work embedding disability inclusion in disaster management and Spatial Innovation’s flood information portal for Lockyer Valley.

A people’s choice Photography award went to Tina Marshall from Bundaberg care provider Carinbundi for a shot that both promotes disaster preparedness and captures the heart of community resilience – looking out for your mates.

Winning projects will now progress as finalists for the National Resilient Australia Awards, which will be announced in late 2024.

The Queensland Resilient Australia Awards are an initiative of the Australian Institute for Disaster Resilience, delivered in partnership with Get Ready Queensland, the Queensland Government’s year-round, all hazards, resilience building program, and Suncorp.

2024 Queensland Resilient Australia Award (RAA) winners:

RAA Community category (2 winners)
GIVIT – Wujal Wujal flood recovery project

Following widespread flooding caused by ex-Tropical Cyclone Jasper in late 2023, GIVIT worked closely with Wujal Wujal Aboriginal Shire Council and partners Cape York Partnership and Cooktown District Community Centre to support the displaced community.

GIVIT managed donations of essential goods and services for residents in a culturally appropriate way, and the organisation’s provision of almost 8,900 items helped refurnish 96 social houses and contributed to the community returning to Country within six months.

Australian Red Cross - Walking alongside, building resilience: The First Nations Recovery Group

Australian Red Cross established The First Nations Recovery Group (FNRG) to empower First Nations people to lead community resilience and recovery in Australia, and to help inform the disaster management sector on best practice principles and application for working with First Nations communities.

The group works with local governments to collaborate with First Nations community leaders, members and organisations as well as government departments and agencies and non-First Nations organisations to deliver its work.

They are involved in all phases of disasters, from resilience to response, relief, and recovery. From developing a culturally appropriate First Nations Recovery Framework to building on best-practice resilience approaches

RAA Local Government category
Townsville City Council – Get Ready workshop: Deaf and hard of hearing

Townsville City Council, together with local members of the State Emergency Service and Deaf Connect, hosted a first-of-its-kind disaster preparedness workshop targeted at the deaf and hard-of-hearing community within Townsville.

Presenters were paired with AUSLAN interpreters to deliver practical emergency management information and demonstrations, providing participants with the knowledge and tools they needed to feel prepared, connected and supported before, during and after a severe weather event.

RAA Business category
Aurecon, Port of Brisbane, Queensland Investment Corporation – Global to local: Cross-sector collaboration for resilient infrastructure

With the support of Aurecon and QIC, a resilience assessment was undertaken by Port of Brisbane to review its vulnerability to external risks and hazards, and demonstrate how asset resilience can be measured and inform future investment.

The assessment was the first in Australia to integrate the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction’s Principles of Resilient Infrastructure Scorecard, applying a global benchmark to this critical local asset as Port of Brisbane seek to address the systemic need for public-private partnerships to enhance asset resilience.

RAA Government category
Department of Agriculture and Fisheries – Disaster resilience in the agriculture sector: Planning with purpose

A joint initiative of the Australian Government’s Future Drought Fund and the Queensland Government’s Drought and Climate Adaptation Program, the Farm Business Resilience Program (FBRP) helps farmers better manage weather, climate and other disaster risks through the development and extension of business resilience planning processes. 

The program delivers holistic risk management approaches that consider drought, flood and other disaster impacts within the context of overall environmental, economic and social sustainability aspects of a farming business. 

RAA Mental Health and Wellbeing category
Burnett Respite Services – Carinbundi emergency and disaster readiness training program

Burnett Respite Services (aka Carinbundi) developed a month-long program specifically targeted to the needs of adults with disabilities that focuses on disaster preparedness, resilience and response.

Carinbundi collaborated with Bundaberg Regional Council on the program, which gives participants the opportunity to consider, discuss and review their individual emergency plans, and connects them to local emergency and disaster response services to expand their support network.

The 2024 Queensland RAA winners and highly commended entrants are at www.getready.qld.gov.au/RAA24.