Fires, Floods, Pandemics: Exploring Indigenous leadership in disaster responses webinar
NAIDOC Week is an annual celebration of Indigenous culture and excellence. It recognises the indelible place of Indigenous peoples in the deep history, and contemporary expressions, of modern Australia. To mark NAIDOC Week the Australian Institute for Disaster Resilience, National Indigenous Disaster Resilience, and Natural Hazards Research Australia were proud to host a NAIDOC Week online panel ‘Fires, Floods, Pandemics: Indigenous leadership in disaster response’.
This online panel sought to reframe Indigenous peoples in disaster resilience discourses from a lens of vulnerability to one of strength and leadership. While vulnerabilities do exist within Indigenous communities, understanding Indigenous people through the lens of vulnerability alone misses the strengths of communities and diminishes and neglects the leadership roles Indigenous groups have occupied in times of crisis.
This special NAIDOC Week panel shines a light on Indigenous health leadership in disaster responses. The discussion explored the stories of each speaker who reflected on their experiences leading public health responses to major disasters such as fires, floods, and pandemics. The panel explored shared elements and points of divergence in their experiences, and ended by considering how Indigenous groups might be empowered to continue to lead in future disaster responses.
Webinar hosts:
- Dr Margaret Moreton - Executive Director, AIDR
- Bhiamie Williamson - Program Lead, National Indigenous Disaster Resilience Project, Fire to Flourish
Guest Speakers:
- Georgina Bruinsma - Senior Manager Aboriginal Leadership and Engagement, Social Futures
- Patrick Rosser - Program Manager, First Nations Health Equity-Integrated Care, Gold Coast Health
- Kristy Crooks - Aboriginal Program Manager, Public Health Aboriginal Team, Health Protection- Hunter New England Population Health
- Professor Cheryl Desha- Science and Innovation Director, Natural Hazards Research Australia
Webinar Slides: Fires, Floods, Pandemics: Exploring Indigenous leadership in disaster responses webinar (PDF 8.9MB)
