What's New in Knowledge | March 2024
The Bureau of Meteorology has released a wrap up of Australia’s weather in 2023 through its Annual Climate Statement. The statement showed that the year was warmer than average, rainfall was close to average overall, but quite variable with it being above average in the north and below average in the south.
The Australian Government released the submissions to its Alternative Commonwealth Capabilities for Crisis Response Discussion Paper. These submissions (and any other submission to inquiries) are a really good source materials and help to understand what agencies think about particular issues. We were pleased that The Mandarin featured our submission which suggested that the ‘alternative’ capabilities were to invest into community-based risk reduction.
The Productivity Commission’s 2024 Report on Government Services examines the Emergency Management sector.
This is an interesting article from a historian and complexity scientist (now that’s a cool signature block), which looks at Cliodynamics, a statistical approach to looking at how complex systems change over time.
UNDRR comes out swinging at a range of seven disaster myths, looking at ‘1-in-100’ year floods, and ‘natural disasters’.
In understanding consequences and recovery, the House of Representatives Economics Subcommittee is conducting an inquiry into insurers responses to the 2022 floods. This ABC article highlights some of the issues, while this article looks at insurance issues in Queensland. This article by the ABC looks at insurance on farm machinery, and this one by The Guardian on insurance costs’ contribution to inflation.
This article considers the impacts of disasters on cemeteries, including Kerang Cemetery and how it was affected by floods. This article on the Türkiye Earthquake highlights a push to build quickly rather than with quality (and build back better). This article reports research that finds the fires of 2019-20 cost the tourist economy $2.8 billion.
The winter storm in Texas in 2021 provides some fascinating insights using mobile phone location data, as well as nighttime images to understand impacts on local communities. While in Queensland, the floods in the far north have sparked the relocation question again, but adding the challenge of where to? This article on NZ’s Cyclone Gabrielle reflects on the fragile nature of its infrastructure.
This is an interesting paper that exposes the challenges of person to person fundraising, which seems that those that are already relatively wealthy are the ones that benefit most. This ABC article look at self-organised community efforts after the storms that affected Mirboo North in Victoria.
This paper looks at identifying multiple hazard events over the last 123 years using the EMDAT database, finding multiple hazard events are more responsible for economic losses, but conversely, single hazard events resulting in higher fatalities.
In thinking about systemic risk, this Conversation article raises the issue of economic and population growth as the contributor to deteriorating quality of life; pollution, habitat destruction, intractable waste and climate change. The RAND Corporation look at the threats to America’s critical infrastructure and this paper looks at cyber risks to physical assets.
The Australian Disaster Resilience Network held its first Resilience Exchange, which had Professor Lauren Rickards, and Miriam Lumb and Emily Humpherys talk about systems thinking. ASIO’s Annual Threat Assessment for 2024 has been released, while UNCTAD released a report on disruption to global shipping routes. This article focuses on Victoria’s power outage and this one on grid breaking thunderstorms.
Looking at First Nations knowledge, the Natural Hazard Center in Colorado have developed this module on indigenous sovereignty in disasters. Thinking systemically, this article argues that First Nations people need to be at the forefront of the energy transition.
For children and young people, this news piece focuses on what kids in Japan should do if they are without an adult. Sobering themes in this research in Nature, where young people identify that they do not feel that life is worth living. Whereas this is a hopeful piece, where young share what they have been doing to live through disasters.
UNICEF and Deloitte Access Economics have released a report on the impact of disasters on young people, finding, among other things, they are more likely to experience disasters if they live in remote and regional areas, are disadvantaged and are First Nations, and are 4.2% less likely to finish year 12.
Considering animals in disasters, this Conversation article poses some challenging questions around the value of life. This piece looks at what can be done to protect native animals from introduced predators where they have lost habitat from fire.
This article from the ABC examines the risks to native species, and the sanctuaries that are managed for their protection. A rescue mission is underway to rescue cows stranded in the Daintree rainforest by the Far North Queensland flooding.
Putting inequity at the centre of our thinking, this article looks at earthquakes and work that is trying to capture social vulnerability that traditional catastrophe models are not capturing. This article highlights the absence of the needs of refugees from National Adaptation Plans.
This paper examines the issues that people with hearing loss face with bushfires. Kevin Blanchard continues to be busy and has released a new report Intersectionality, marginalised groups & disasters: Unhoused people, sex workers and LGBTQIA+ populations.
In Disaster Risk Reduction, the big news in the NSW’s first State Disaster Mitigation plan, a comprehensive look at the hazard (although not systemic) risks and costs facing NSW, and how they will address them. The Guardian picks up the story. This explainer from UNDRR looks at the role of trees in reducing disaster risk. This piece from Nature reviews a book that takes aim at nature based solutions. This is the University of Melbourne Playbook for Urban biodiversity.
This opinion piece from NZ’s Resilience National Science Challenge, looks at challenges and opportunities of risk reduction, and frames the challenge as the need to avoid recovery, as it can ‘really suck’. This paper examines the evolution of risk communications from deficit/dissemination models to participation models.
The devastating and tragic bushfires in Chile produced a good news story, with one village that invested in DRR measures surviving the fires. This is an excellent article on human decision making when it comes to relocation from hazard risk areas, with a focus on one of my favourite topics, place attachment. This is also an examination from Cosmos magazine on relocation, while this report explores judicial avenues for climate displaced communities.
This is a useful review of bonds for disaster resilience and tools for DRR financing. The Australian Reinsurance Pool Corporation has also released a report that suggests insurance is becoming easier to obtain in Northern Australia.
This is a useful explainer from the OECD on civil society and its importance – good for us to understand given not all DRR is levees and firebreaks. The folks at DisasterWISE showcase the community resilience work that they are doing at Eden, in NSW. The UK Resilience Forum shines a light on how the UK approaches resilience.
This paper examines the relationship between built open spaces and their users and looks at KPIs for issues such as evacuation as a result of sudden onset disasters. This news story focuses on exercising as a disaster risk reduction activity, this one being NSW SES testing its flood boat capabilities.
This piece from Japan looks at the idea of a movable tsunami barrier which is also able to use the tide to generate electricity. Australian Red Cross and Swinburne release a report on data capability and resource mapping for disaster preparedness. This paper looks at how digital technologies can be used to map social capital, whereas this paper examines social capital’s role in community flood resilience in the US.
Looking at weather matters and climate change, the Climate Council released a report examining the summer’s unpredictable weather, as did the Climate Extremes Centre of Excellence State of Weather and Climate Extremes in 2023. The World Resources Institute have released their State of Climate Action report for 2023, finding that progress made in closing the global gap in climate action remains woefully inadequate — 41 of 42 indicators assessed are not on track to achieve their 2030 targets.
Given the increasing strength of hurricanes, there are calls to add a Category 6, to the hurricane categories. This article looks at explaining cold snaps in a heating world. El Nino is set to lose its strength. The Finnish Meteorological Institute suggest that the jump in global temperatures last September is difficult to explain by natural variability.
This Financial Times ($) article looks at what climate change is costing homeowners. This article from Yale Climate Connections outlines the challenges urban fire services face as they may be needed to retrain for wildfires.
There’s been quite a focus on different hazards, with an excellent interactive article on Australia’s bushfire history of the last 40 years ($). The Turkish earthquakes a year on highlighting the deep social scars that have been exposed.
The impact of bushfire smoke is gaining more attention, this piece outlines its effect on aviation, and this one on children. In a similar vein, this article looking at the increasing threat of air pollution in cities. Here’s one on both aviation and air pollution, and climate change. One for the open water swimmers among us, as the shark threat is always in the back of the mind. Icelandic town on Grindavik sadly may not survive the current Icelandic volcanic eruption.
Focussing on extreme heat, in Western Australia, the significant heatwave has caused hospitalisation to rise. This article focuses on how farmers are seeking to keep cattle cool. This one examines the impact of heat on live music with at least 29 concerts and festivals being affected, and two resulting in deaths. Water recycling could be the key to cooling Sydney’s west, often one of the hottest places on earth.
This excellent piece from VCOSS looks at the link between disadvantage and urban heat. Queensland has a Heat Health Community of Practice, led by Griffith University. This article from the Global Disaster Preparedness Center looks at the heatwave experience of the Italian Red Cross from last year.
In health, this article from the always excellent Ilan Kelman on the positive benefit of environmental magic on mental health. is taking a significant toll on farmer’s mental health. This paper examines hospital evacuation, while this one looks at counter terrorism preparedness of Dutch hospitals.
The ABC shines a light on the mental health impacts of multiple disasters on farmers. This is an excellent toolkit for managing climate-based emotions, presented by Psychology for a Safe Climate. This paper examines the role of spirituality in influencing anxiety, stress and depression for earthquake survivors.
The annual Housing Income Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) survey finds that Australians have experienced growing psychological distress over the past 15 years.
Looking at governance and leadership, this is an excellent presentation and paper from the very experienced Dominique Horan-Doran SC, on assisting Royal Commissions. This Conversation article again focuses on Canada’s governance arrangements for disasters. In NSW, the State Emergency Management Plan has been revised. This is an excellent story on an all-women fire fighting squad in Borneo.
Examining the frontiers in technology, this is a concerning article from Nature on the environmental costs of generative AI, and its energy needs, while this one focuses on its benefits and acknowledges its costs. The OECD have put out a paper on the benefits and risks of AI in health care. However, this interesting piece from the Centre for Social Impact reminds us of its potential impact of democratising knowledge.
This report from Red Cross explores the existing uses, benefits, trade-offs and challenges of using chatbots in humanitarian contexts. The Stockholm Environment Institute is looking at how AI can influence climate change. The CSIRO’s Responsible AI Network has delivered a workshop on Human Rights and AI, and a new impact assessment tool. This paper examines disaster location identification from social media using deep learning. This report from Portable examines the Social Impact of AI.
Looking at how we develop and maintain knowledge, the Lessons team from EMV have released their Lesson Management Newsletter. This publication from the International Science Council outlines the importance of protecting science in the times of crisis.
This is a fascinating article on the science behind going with your ‘gut feeling’. While focused on elections in the US, the RAND corporation have this guide to reducing the spread of false and misleading information, which is important given that the World Economic Forum have identified AI generated misinformation as the number one threat globally in the next two years.
Back in time, the 60th anniversary of the HMAS Voyager disaster is remembered. The Morcombe Bay tragedy in the UK is remembered 20 years ago, and its impact on modern slavery laws.
Did you know? What happens when you are struck by lightning?
In good news, there is plenty of it this month. A Turkish boy who lost his legs in the Turkiye Earthquake last year takes his first steps. Carnarvon National Park’s recovery from bushfire has been captured on camera, and this one shows the benefit of flood waters on nature in the Channel Country in Queensland. A lovely story of a four-year-old who plans to visit all NSW Fire and Rescue stations to raise funds for burns survivors.
Also on the great things young people do, they are learning stonemasonry to help restore a building destroyed by fire in South Australia. This is an excellent story on the steps the small town of Eugowra in NSW are taking to recovery. A grandmother’s ashes that were stored in a microwave that was subsequently donated to flood survivors have been returned.
Sources
The Conversation, ABC, Prevention Web, Nature, OECD, Global Disaster Preparedness Center.
Thanks to Isabel Cornes, Mel Taylor, Melissa Matthews, Sandy Whight, Elissa Berry, Ella Wilkinson, Darryl Glover for articles.