President’s Update

Welcome to the August edition of the AWE newsletter.

In July, Australians proudly participated in NAIDOC Week to celebrate the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. The theme of this year’s NAIDOC Week was Voice. Treaty. Truth. – the three key elements to the reforms set out in the Uluru Statement from the Heart that represent the unified position of First Nations Australians. We hope that you were able to join one of the many celebrations that took place across Australia. Māori Language Week takes place in New Zealand in September (Mahuru). This celebration is a model of inclusive communication that brings people together and helps expand knowledge and appreciation of the Māori culture. There is much we can learn from our Indigenous peoples – from culture to language to building resilience.  AWE recognises all its Indigenous members and all Indigenous women who play a role in emergencies and disaster resilience.

We’ll soon be distributing our second AWE Member Survey to find out about what you think of AWE to date, what you would like and how we can best support you. The survey will help us to continue developing the AWE Network in the right direction. Keep your eye out for the survey in your inboxes and help us make AWE even more AWEsome!

AWE Website – www.awenetwork.com.au

We are pleased to announce that the Australasian Women in Emergencies Network website is live. The website contains basic information like learning more about the network, become a member, buy badges and find out more about events and activities.

We will continue to grow and develop the website and your feedback and contributions are very welcome.

Visit the website here www.awenetwork.com.au

In the News

AWE Nominated!!!!! Regional Achievement Awards – Vic

We are proud to announce that the AWE Network was recently nominated at the 2019 Victorian Regional Achievement and Community Awards. The Gala Presentation Dinner is on 11th October in Melbourne – please contact Amanda Lamont at [email protected]if you are interested in attending.

Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions Initiative – WA

A fantastic initiative was launched today from Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (BDCA) calling for more women in fire management.

The department recognises the challenges ahead in increasing the representation of women in fire and understands the role that targets play in demonstrating commitment, designating accountability, and focusing attention on the objective. These targets are voluntarily set goals that the agency aspires to over a five-year period. The targets developed are considered fair and reasonable to deliver change but should continue to be driven by merit-based processes.
•      30 per cent women in PSA fire positions by 2024
•      20 per cent women in AWU positions by 2024
•      10 per cent women in fire leadership positions (level 4 and above for PSA and level 3 and above for AWU) in districts/regions by 2024.

The full report is here –  https://library.dbca.wa.gov.au/static/FullTextFiles/PAM04367.pdf

New Family Violence Framework for Emergency Management – Vic

The 2019 Family Violence Framework for Emergency Management supports planning and response to family violence during emergencies, outlines existing family violence strategy and policy and the opportunities for partnership between the family violence sector and emergency management sector.

The emergency management sector plays a critical role in working with individuals, families and communities at a time of increased risk of family violence and cumulative trauma. The emergency management response, including planning and collaboration with other services, is an important part of the system response to prevent and reduce the risks and impacts of family violence. At a community level, the emergency management response to family violence promotes greater equity and resilience during times of emergency and emergency recovery.

The Family Violence Framework for Emergency Management replaces the Addressing family violence in communities recovering from emergencies strategy and was developed by the DHHS Emergency Management Branch in collaboration with the family violence and emergency management sectors, as well as VCOSS.

World Humanitarian Day – 19^thAugust

On World Humanitarian Day on 19^thAugust we paid tribute to all women humanitarian leaders, thanking them for all they do to make the world a better place! https://www.un.org/en/events/humanitarianday/

Enabling Sustainable Emergency Volunteering

In September 2018 the Emergency Volunteering Shared Learning Network (EVN) was created in conjunction with Enabling sustainable emergency volunteering project to enable and enhance the value of emergency volunteering in Australian communities and promote the exchange of knowledge.

Headed by AWE members Dr Blythe McLennan and Dr Tarn Kruger, the EVN was initially set up as a six-month pilot program. The EVN has well over 200 members that include volunteers, volunteer managers, supporters and advocates of volunteering from emergency services, local government, the community sector and research institutions. It is now seeing itself transitioning into a new phase of becoming an established network. As part of this, the EVN recently got its own website.

Anyone interested in research and developments in emergency volunteering can join the EVN. Researchers and practitioners are also invited to share updates and resources to the EVN.

https://www.bnhcrc.com.au/news/2019/project-update-july-2019-enabling-sustainable-emergency-volunteering

New research to support people with disabilities in disasters

AWE member Michelle Villeneuve: From her LinkedIn page: “Well, my NSW DIDRR Team and our community partners have some very exciting news…Read the funding announcement here and a brief on what our next DIDRR NSW project will achieve. Please stay tuned for future posts on each of our community partners and their roles in this important research that will take place across three regions of NSW. We will also share details on the research team and what each member of our team brings to this project. In the coming weeks, we will be posting research position for a highly qualified Post Doctoral candidate and will welcome applications. We will also be seeking 2 PhD students and a Research Assistant to work on this 3 year project.”

https://www.arc.gov.au/news-publications/media/research-highlights/new-research-support-people-disabilities-disasters.

AWE Network contributes to Inclusive Governance for Effective Disaster Risk Reduction in Nepal

Amanda Lamont, AWE V-P and Alessia Anibaldi, AWE Qld chapter co-chair

This month, a number of AWE Network members contributed as Guest Speakers to the Australia Awards Short Course on Inclusive Governance for Effective Disaster Risk Reduction, Nepal. The short course was delivered by the University of Queensland (UQ) International Development (ID), and directed by Queensland Chapter co-lead Alessia Anibaldi, Humanitarian Specialist and Manager at UQ ID. The participants – who are senior level representatives from the Government of Nepal involved in DRR and DRM– benefited extensively from the expertise of AWEsome Amanda Lamont, Tammy Miles, Juliette Wright and Rebecca Barber, who engaged in enthusiastic knowledge sharing with Nepali counterparts.

Alessia says “The focus of the short course was Inclusion; It was a privilege and pleasure to showcase the expertise of AWE members whose contributions illustrated the commitment and dedication to inclusive practices for impactful outcomes in DRR and DRM. The Network is a true wealth of expertise in this regard, which we should tap into systematically, whenever opportunities of the kind arise; I hope there will be many more”.

Amanda says she was “pleased to see so many women participating in the event and who showed such an interest in the AWE network and hearing about the many ways women play a role in emergencies and disaster risk reduction in Australia.”

Participants from Australia Awards Nepal DRR Short Course fostering linkages with Australia Awards scholars from Nepal and Australian counterparts engaged in DRR at University House ANU in Canberra.

AWE Events

NSW

Resilience Through Shared Information and Collaborative Engagement – CIFAL Newcastle – 1^st October

Recent emergency response reviews have identified challenges, barriers and problems linked to public information and engagement. In reaction to this, CIFAL Newcastle in collaboration with the City of Newcastle invites you to this workshop which aims to:

• review current process adopted by emergency services, local authorities, community organisations etc. for sharing information and public engagement.
• determine the extent to which current processes facilitate effective public information and engagement
• explore possible solutions that contribute to resilience.

Register here workshop-tickets-67941885007

Women in Leadership Summit 2019 – Sydney – 24^th-27^th September 2019

This year’s theme is Take Action. Because while the world catches up, we need to lead the way by creating our own opportunities and helping other women do so as well.

https://www.theleadershipinstitute.com.au/women-in-leadership-summit-2019/?utm_source=salesforce&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=WILS_2019

Blue Mountains AWE Meeting 17^th September Lawson Hall 12pm – 2pm

Mel Taylor and Kris Newton will be presenting on ‘Emergency preparedness for Animals in the Blue Mountains’.  We are still looking for 1 or 2 volunteers to present, please let me know if you, or someone you know would be interested in this opportunity.

Please email Catherine Strods at [email protected] if you are planning on attending the event.

AWE NSW Schedule of Events for 2019

NZ

Australasian Women in Emergencies Network New Zealand Speaker Series – Wellington, NZ

Enjoy storytelling, networking and nibbles with others who want to support women working in emergencies lead and succeed.

Navigating Bias and Communicating with Confidence to Influence Behaviour Change

Rachel Utumapu will share her story of navigating a male oriented organisation and the biases she has faced. She will share her tips for combatting these biases while staying positive and learning to communicate with confidence to influence behaviour change.

Rachael Utumapu is the National Manager of Women’s Development for Fire and Emergency NZ (FENZ), leading the strategy development, planning and delivery of the Women’s development programme. This is a senior role with responsibility for working across the organisation to ensure that the programmes are integrated and co- ordinated across policy, leadership development, and training, She also builds and maintains relationships with external stakeholders with NZ Police, Defence and other government agencies to ensure alignment with sector approaches to diversity and inclusivity.

Racheal is a Senior Fire Fighter with 16 years’ experience in firefighting and community engagement. Rachael is qualified to work on all operational vehicles, Incident Command Unit, Hazmat / Decontamination Unit,and Rescue Tenders. In addition to her firefighting role Rachael has extensive experience in FENZ Fire Awareness and Intervention Programme, which helps children and young people overcome the issues for fire lighting.
Rachael is also an inspiring leader in her community where she manages Look Good Feel Better (LGFB)workshops for Taranaki a service which delivers free makeovers to men and women going through cancer treatment. Rachael is also Co-director of a not for profit company that provides wig services to men and women suffering hair loss (The New Hair Project, New Plymouth). The company has substantial community outreach and support, which enables it to be financially independent.

When: 22 October, 5.30-7pm
Hosted by: Wellington Region Emergency Management Office 2 Turnbull Street, Thorndon, Wellington
Food and Refreshments Sponsored by McNaughton & Wills

Save the Date – Speaker: Ruth Richardson Breaking Barriers – Stories of a Finance Minister, Mentor and Director

6 November 2019, 12-1pm, Christchurch – venue TBC

VIC

AWE Member Dinner – Southbank, Melbourne – Tuesday 27^thAugust 2019 at 7.30pm

50 AWE members will come together to share dinner and catch up on Tuesday 27^thAugust in Melbourne. Register here if you would like to come along. awe-dinner-melbourne-27th-august-2019-tickets-68911184207 or contact [email protected]or on 0407696300.

AFAC19 powered by INTERSCHUTZ – 27^th– 30^th August – Melbourne

It’s great that there are so many AWE members speaking at AFAC19, BNHCRC Research Day and the Australian Disaster Resilience Conference (ADRC) in Melbourne in August.

The theme at AFAC19, A shift to the new norm: riding the wave of change will look into how the emergency management sector is transitioning to a new normality. AFAC19 will run concurrently with the Institution of Fire Engineers (IFE) National Conference and the Australian Disaster Resilience Conference (ADRC).

The 2019 Australian Disaster Resilience Conference will consider what it takes to be future ready. Recognising the importance of being prepared for the unexpected, how can we address pressing issues and be confident that we are future ready when it comes to disasters?

Refuge: Where art meets disaster – Sat 24^th Aug – Sat 7^th Sep, various times – Vic

Based at North Melbourne Town Hall, Arts House is a place where artists and audiences gather to find new frontiers in contemporary performance.

Since 2016, Arts House’s Refuge program has examined different potential disasters that might occur in Melbourne and across the world due to climate change, and maps how communities might respond. With artists and emergency services as key collaborators, Arts House brings together thinkers, artists, first responders and cultural leaders to explore social and community resilience and creative approaches to preparedness. Each annual Refuge cycle includes a laboratory, artist residencies, and a program of public events including an emergency exercise simulation.

Refuge 2019 will focus on Displacement: Are we ready to evacuate if the worst comes to pass? What do we need to do to prepare if we were displaced? What can we learn from Traditional Owners and First Nations who, over 120,000 years, have already survived many climate changes? What skills and knowledge can we share – and do you know your neighbours well enough to ask for their help?

Bookings are now open.

AWE Chapter Updates

NSW

We recently had a member reach out who is moving from NZ to Sydney in a few months’ time. The member was hoping to connect with some women in Sydney to learn about the emergency management sector in NSW. By putting her in touch with our NSW Chapter Lead, we have been able to connect her with NSW AWE members, get her learning about emergency management in NSW and hopefully starting to make some new friends.
A very successful presentation with the OEM senior leader team.

Ourimbah July Meeting 

Dr. Helen Giggins presented to the group about her research project entitled ‘Disaster Resilience – Capacity Building of Women in Fiji’ and her experiences and lessons learned working with the local women in Fiji.

AWE members met prior to AFAC to connect and practice conference presentations. Heidi, Catherine and Anne discussed the identity myths and businesses continuity planning across the academic, emergency and community sectors while enjoying the recently opened UTS building 2. Heidi presented on Centralising environmental resilience in DRR agencies using the SDG’s while Anne and Catherine offered some great tips on professional delivery. What an enjoyable and productive way to prepare for a conference!

Lessons Learned Forum – NSW

A few of our members were lucky enough to attend the Lessons Management Forum in July. We were fortunate to catch up some of our lovely Victorian AWE members for dinner following the two days.

NZ

We are excited to announce our upcoming speaker series. The series will be hosted by various emergency management organisations and will feature outstanding women sharing their leadership stories and wisdom. See the events section for details of our first two sessions.

Professional Development

Three tips for finding key stakeholders three-tips-finding-key-stakeholders-renae-hanvin

A new collection is now available on the Knowledge Hub, housing the deliverables from the National Resilience Taskforce. Learn about the resources available to support disaster risk reduction policy and practice in Australia.  https://knowledge.aidr.org.au/collections/disaster-risk-reduction/

Woman interrupted . . . how to do more ‘Yep’ and less ‘But’ to advance equality woman-interrupted-how-do-more-yep-less-advance-ruth-mcgowan-oam

Membership

AWE membership continues to grow and we now have 1,154 members across Australia, New Zealand and further. Special congratulations to the New Zealand Chapter which has almost quadrupled since April!

Member Survey

Watch this space – AWE Member Survey Coming Soon!

The AWE Network will be emailing out a members’ survey in the next few weeks. The survey will provide the national committee with further insights on what our members want, helping us to refine the direction of the network and the services it offers. It’s also a chance for you, our fabulous members, to tell us how we’re travelling.

When you receive the survey, please have a cuppa and take a few minutes to contribute. Your thoughts and ideas are greatly appreciated!

AWE Badges

We have new badges available for purchase in the AWE shop on the AWE website – www.awenetwork.com.au  or email [email protected]

Social Media

In case you missed it on social media this month:

Gender and climate (in)security in the Pacific, The Strategist  https://www.aspistrategist.org.au/gender-and-climate-insecurity-in-the-pacific/

Funding for women’s leadership in Australian local government. A pool of scholarships are currently available for women working in local government to participate in a range of leadership courses. The grants are allocated with the specific intent of providing powerful and effective development opportunities for women serving in local governments, shires and councils. Expressions of Interest close 20th of September. localgovernment.html

Females of all ages who contribute to the Bayside community in Victoria are invited to have their portraits taken as part of a unique project highlighting the significant and varied role of women and girls in our community. The portraits are part of a ground breaking gender equity campaign, Changing Faces: Reframing Women in Local Democracy. Changing Faces: Reframing Women in Local Democracybayside.vic.gov.au

Women in local government Awards https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6570095026771243008/

Want to know more about NYC Emergency Management Commissioner Deanne Criswell? Find out about her vision to help prepare New Yorkers for emergencies in the latest episode of our “A Day in the Life” series.

How to self-learn from role models  how-to-self-learn-from-role-models

Congratulations to Michelle Murphy ASM from Ambulance Victoria on being recognised as one of the IPAA Victoria Top 50 Public Sector Women for 2019. An amazing leader and role model. https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6570039938396622848/

Strengthening Resilience in the context of self-care and wellbeing has been a strong interest area of David Younger’s since working in the aftermath of the 2009 Victorian Bushfires. https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6546863672038354944/

It’s happening for Tiana Hokins!!! It is going to be an action packed couple of weeks in the UK learning all about the wellbeing impacts to those conducting emergency reconnecting family and loved ones in emergencies. Thanks to the Emergency Services Foundation for making this possible! https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6565187418109161472/

The University of Melbourne Development Studies Program and Humanitarian Advisory Group are excited to invite you to our second Professional Practice Seminar for 2019 – Taking Pride: including sexual and gender minorities in aid programming. To find out more information and to RSVP to this free event, click on the link below! Looking forward to seeing you all there on September 5th! https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6567029012223356928/

What’s the difference between diversity and under-representation? Janine Taylor from Queensland Fire and Emergency Services talks about this and explains how better diversity and inclusion improves capability in emergency management. https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6562839728180342784/

Paula Hives – I love listening to stories about the women who blazed the trail in decades gone by. This lady was my inspiration in so many ways with a magnificent career that ended all too soon when she was just a bit older than I am now. My Aunty, Peterlyn Thomas, was the first Air Cabin Safety Investigator and was sooo passionate about cabin safety, she is to this day, the reason why I will never wear strappy shoes on a plane, you know, in case you need to evacuate a plane in a hurry & shoes need to come off

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