Griffith University researchers are taking on problem solving for disaster challenges with curiosity and compassion.

Around the world including here in Queensland, many people and assets are located in areas with increasing climate-related risks (floods, bushfires etc).

This is an expensive problem that is causing significant social upheaval and uncertainty amongst leaders about how core services such as power, water, food and telecommunications can be assured going forward.

‘Multidisciplinary’ teams and ‘multi-stakeholder’ partnerships are essential when the stakes are this high.

Griffith researchers across sciences and applied sciences disciplines are teaming up with colleagues from other universities and end-users to explore solutions, and recently took time to share these experiences at the university’s 2023 ‘Disaster Management Network In-Focus’ sessions.

This included several PhD scholars who are working with their supervisory teams on game-changing agendas across data for decision-support, organisational learning and governance frameworks.

During the Sciences In-Focus Session, key areas of focus included (presenters noted, see also below):

  • Developing frameworks and communities of practice for transitioning and repurposing land and infrastructure to support ‘managed’ or ‘planned’ retreat for communities and critical infrastructure that could be ‘in harms way’ now or in future. (Howes, McNaught, Osborne, Taygfeld)
  • Enabling improved knowledge for decision support, through computational analytics and visualisation, modelling and artificial intelligence enabled data mining, and prototyping options. (Bunn, Helbig, Jo, Strauss, Michael)
  • Co-designing emergency management measures for ‘before, during and after’ disasters, from adaptation measures through to emergency accommodation, including roles for each level of government, private sector and community. (Burton, Taygfeld)

All presenters spoke of the importance of cross-sector partnerships for funding the transition, developing multi-disciplinary, cross-institutional research teams and having external partners who are committed to using the research outputs and outcomes.

Research presentations included: (alphabetical)

Prof Stuart Bunn: Building catchment resilience tools 

Prof Paul Burton: Providing emergency accommodation in places affected by extreme events 

Dr Mardé Helbig: Predictive analysis for disaster resilience 

A/Prof Michael Howes: “Climate Adaptation: Funding and Financing Managed Retreat – Transitioning and Repurposing At-Risk Properties”, discussing the resourcing of transitioning and repurposing communities (or ‘managed retreats’).

A/ProfJun Jo: Bushfire detection/ monitoring model and application (Korea) 

Prof Brendan Mackey: “NESP (National Environmental Science Program) Resilient Landscape Northern Rivers Adaptation Project”, providing an overview of the project and discussing why climate change adaptation and disaster management are no and forever more ‘joined at the hip’. 

Rebecca McNaught: Innovation and deadlock in governing climate change and disasters collaboratively – lessons from the Northern Rivers region, NSW, Australia 

Dr Ruby Michael: Green Infrastructure Research Labs (GIRLS) – a Queensland node for the design of soil-plant systems 

Dr Natalie Osborne: (The politics of) housing adaptation and recovery  

Dr Darrell Strauss: Surge Impact model for storm surge warning systems 

Pazit Taygfeld: Community-led adaptation and resilience planning – Shoalhaven case study