Vulnerability to bushfires in rural Australia: A case study from East Gippsland, Victoria

Whittaker, Joshua; Handmer, John; Mercer, David

doi:10.1016/j.jrurstud.2011.11.002

Cited by 70 publications

(42 citation statements)

References 52 publications

(43 reference statements)

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“…Similarly, BlazeAid formed in the aftermath of the 2009 'Black Saturday' bushfires in Victoria, Australia, to help farmers rebuild fences. The group was formed by two farmers who sought assistance from family, friends and local volunteers to clear debris and rebuild farm fences (Webber and Jones, 2011 Apan et al 2010 andWhittaker et al 2012).…”

Section: Emergent Volunteerismmentioning

confidence: 99%

A review of informal volunteerism in emergencies and disasters: Definition, opportunities and challenges

Whittaker

McLennan

Handmer

2015

International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction

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338

320

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Despite highly specialised and capable emergency management systems, ordinary citizens are usually first on the scene in an emergency or disaster, and remain long after official services have ceased. Citizens often play vital roles in helping those affected to respond and recover, and can provide invaluable assistance to official agencies. However, in most developed countries, emergency and disaster management relies largely on a workforce of professionals and, to varying degrees, volunteers affiliated with official agencies. Those who work outside of such systems have tended to be viewed as a nuisance or liability, and their efforts are often undervalued. Given increasing disaster risk worldwide due to population growth, urban development and climate change, it is likely that 'informal' volunteers will provide much of the additional surge capacity required to respond to more frequent emergencies and disasters in the future. This paper considers the role of informal volunteers in emergency and disaster management. Definitions of volunteerism are reviewed and it is argued that there is an overemphasis on volunteering within, and for, state and formal organisations. We offer a broader definition of 'informal volunteerism' that recognises the many ways ordinary citizens volunteer their time, knowledge, skills and resources to help others in times of crisis. Two broad types of informal volunteerism are identified -emergent and extending-and the implications for emergency and disaster management are considered. Particular attention is given to increasing 'digital volunteerism' due to the greater accessibility of sophisticated but simple information and communication technologies. Culture and legal liability are identified as key barriers to greater participation of informal volunteers. We argue that more adaptive and inclusive models of emergency and disaster management are needed to harness the capacities and resilience that exist within and across communities.

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Section: Emergent Volunteerismmentioning

confidence: 99%

A review of informal volunteerism in emergencies and disasters: Definition, opportunities and challenges

Whittaker

McLennan

Handmer

2015

International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction

Self Cite

338

320

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The portion of Australian articles that focus on post-fire concerns examine a range of topics, including individual and community recovery strategies [57,58], the potential influence of Black Saturday on policy and risk management [59, 60•], and the experiences of charity organizations, volunteers, and social workers in assisting with recovery after Black Saturday [61][62][63]. However, the majority of Australian articles focus on homeowner decision-making during a fire [13,57,[64][65][66][67][68][69].…”

Section: Experiencing and Recovering From A Wildfirementioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, the majority of Australian articles focus on homeowner decision-making during a fire [13,57,[64][65][66][67][68][69].…”

Section: Experiencing and Recovering From A Wildfirementioning

confidence: 99%

“…In one study of a fire in a declining rural Australian farming area, three quarters of households reported having someone stay and defend. While the farmers were well equipped to stay and defend, they also had significant financial incentives to protect their property and livelihood, particularly as many were underinsured due to financial constraints created by recent drought [57]. Similarly, a study after a California fire found that which groups benefitted and/or lost financially as a result of the fire was influenced in part by the recent economic downturn and drought conditions.…”

Section: Temporal Gradientmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Community Wildfire Preparedness: a Global State-of-the-Knowledge Summary of Social Science Research

McCaffrey

2015

Curr Forestry Rep

146

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This article builds on findings from a synthesis of fire social science research that was published from 2000 to 2010 to understand what has been learned more recently about public response to wildfires. Two notable changes were immediately noted in the fairly substantial number of articles published between 2011 and 2014. First, while over 90 % of the articles found in the initial synthesis were US-based studies, roughly half of the articles published since 2010 have been conducted outside the USA, the majority from Australia. Second, while the primary focus of earlier studies was on pre-fire mitigation efforts on both public and private lands, roughly half of the recent articles focused on dynamics during and after a fire. Overall, findings from the current review re-enforce key themes identified in the previous synthesis work and provide a deeper and more nuanced understanding of how certain variables, such as risk perception, may influence public response to wildfires. In addition, several important dynamics emerged across studies: the similarity of findings across countries, increased work across the temporal gradient, the importance of social interactions and of place attachment in shaping response, the need to take local knowledge and context into account, and the importance of financial support. These patterns suggest that while no single outreach approach or policy is likely to be effective everywhere or for everyone, efforts that facilitate development of relationships, within communities and between community members and fire personnel, can contribute to increased preparedness at the individual and community level by facilitating information exchange and helping to build a sense of community.

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“…Furthermore, although boys and girls were equally represented in the sample, the data were not analysed through a gendered lens. Yet personal characteristics such as age, gender, race, socioeconomic status, ethnicity and disability strongly influence how people experience hazards and disasters (Hewitt 1997;Wisner et al 2004;Collins 2005;Eriksen et al 2010;Whittaker et al 2012). Therefore, this research should be extended to incorporate gendered analyses of both younger children and adolescents from a wider range of socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds.…”

Section: Implications For Research Policy and Practicementioning

confidence: 99%

Children’s knowledge of bushfire emergency response

Towers¹

2015

Int. J. Wildland Fire

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Abstract. In the aftermath of the Black Saturday bushfire disaster, the Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission recommended that bushfire education be made a formal part of the Australian national curriculum. Crucially, the success of any hazards education program depends on the degree to which the learner's existing knowledge and experience is accommodated in the education process. Yet accommodating children's knowledge in bushfire education is hampered by a lack of research on how children conceptualise bushfire hazards. To address this gap, this paper presents a detailed qualitative analysis of children's knowledge of bushfire hazards with a specific focus on emergency response. Across four bushfire-prone locations in south-eastern Australia, 26 focus group interviews were conducted with 87 children aged between 8 and 12 years. To better understand the construction of children's knowledge, individual interviews were also conducted with 37 parents. Through their engagement in the research process, children demonstrated a capacity for engaging in serious discussions about bushfire hazards and although their knowledge was often characterised by gaps and misconceptions, they also demonstrated a capacity for understanding the fundamental principles of emergency response, particularly when they had been involved in bushfire planning within their household.

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Vulnerability to bushfires in rural Australia: A case study from East Gippsland, Victoria

Cited by 70 publications

References 52 publications

A review of informal volunteerism in emergencies and disasters: Definition, opportunities and challenges

A review of informal volunteerism in emergencies and disasters: Definition, opportunities and challenges

Community Wildfire Preparedness: a Global State-of-the-Knowledge Summary of Social Science Research

Children’s knowledge of bushfire emergency response

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