The Hon Michael Keenan MP, Minister for Justice Minister Assisting the Prime Minister on Counter Terrorism

MEDIA RELEASE: 13 October marked the International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction – a day to acknowledge the efforts of communities to reduce their exposure to natural disasters.

This year’s theme ‘knowledge for life’ focuses on the use of traditional, indigenous and local knowledge to complement science in disaster risk management.

With 19.3 million people displaced by disasters globally in 2014 it is vital that every citizen and government plays their part in building more disaster resilient communities and nations.

The Australian Government recognises that Indigenous peoples provide an important contribution to disaster risk reduction through their experience and traditional knowledge.

That is why the Government provided $200,000 to pilot community based and community led emergency management training in Indigenous communities across central, northern and north-west Australia. This training will build local capacity and help communities further refine their local emergency management plans.

This is on top of a $150,000 commitment to review the Keeping Our Mob Safe strategy, which provides a framework for coordinated and cooperative approaches to emergency management in remote Indigenous communities. The review will ensure that the strategy remains up-to-date and continues to meets the needs of Indigenous communities.

Engaging local communities and indigenous peoples is also a key principle of the United Nation’s Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030, which aims to reduce disaster risk and losses in lives, livelihoods and health.

Across northern Australia, indigenous landowners utilise traditional fire management practices in the early dry season to create cool, low intensity fires. These practices help prevent more serious wildfires later in the season.

Rangers are funded through the Australian Government’s Indigenous Advancement Strategy and the Indigenous Protected Areas programme to implement traditional fire management regimes.

The International Day for Disaster Reduction started in 1989 following approval by the United Nations General Assembly. The UN General Assembly sees the IDDR as a way to promote a global culture of disaster reduction, including disaster prevention, mitigation and preparedness.

Further information on International Day for Disaster Reduction can be found here: http://www.unisdr.org/we/campaign/iddr

Further information on the Australian Government’s programs and policies aimed at strengthening disaster resilience can be found here: http://www.ag.gov.au/EmergencyManagement/Pages/default.aspx

Amitabh Joshi, a Nepali filmmaker based in new York, travelled to Nepal in the aftermath of April’s devastating earthquake to document the recovery.

In the process he made these short documentary films about the local artisans restoring the country’s invaluable built heritage.

http://asiasociety.org/blog/asia/videos-how-local-artisans-are-rebuilding-Nepal

Image- Nabin K. Sapkota

Minister for Justice Michael Keenan and NSW Deputy Premier and Minister for Justice and Police Troy Grant today announced that disaster assistance has been activated in response to the August storms which affected parts of the NSW coast and western Sydney.

Mr Keenan said the Australian and New South Wales governments are committed to working together to assist affected communities through the recovery process.

“Assistance is being provided to the local government areas of Penrith, Shoalhaven, Upper Hunter and Wollongong through the jointly‑funded Commonwealth-State Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements (NDRRA).

“The range of assistance measures activated under the NDRRA will ensure that storm-affected communities have access to the help they need to recover, and councils and state agencies have the financial support they need for clean-up operations and repairing damaged infrastructure” Mr Keenan said.

The assistance measures available include:

• personal hardship and distress assistance for affected individuals and families;
• assistance for council counter disaster operations and the restoration of essential public assets;
• concessional interest rate loans for small businesses, primary producers and voluntary not-for-profit bodies;
• freight subsidies for primary producers; and
• grants to voluntary not-for-profit bodies.

Mr Grant said the damage caused by the August storms affected communities across a large part of the state.

“This assistance will be of real benefit to individuals, families, small businesses and primary producers in these communities and ensure they can get back on their feet as soon as possible” Mr Grant said.

For information on personal hardship and distress assistance, contact the Disaster Welfare Assistance Line on 1800 018 444.

To apply for a concessional loan, grant or freight subsidy, contact the NSW Rural Assistance Authority on 1800 678 593 or visit www.raa.nsw.gov.au.

Information on disaster assistance available for this natural disaster can be found on the Australian Government’s Disaster Assist website at www.disasterassist.gov.au and the NSW Office of Emergency Management’s website at www.emergency.nsw.gov.au.

Many different types of professionals respond to an unfolding crisis.

This course provides strategies for interlocking culture specialists with humanitarian specialists during an emergency situation and aims to unify these sometimes conflicting perspectives. The course imparts practical skills and knowledge for taking simple measures to secure and stabilize endangered cultural heritage during a complex emergency situation, which in turn can become a driver for peace and holistic development. The recovery and stabilization of such cultural material can be a strategy that allows people to cope in a crisis.

After four international, and more than nine regional and national editions in Europe, the Middle East and Asia, the 2016 course is hosted in Washington D.C, USA, by the Smithsonian Institution. The content will be enriched through case examples on safeguarding cultural heritage in the aftermath of national disasters such as Hurricane Katrina and most recently, Hurricane Sandy.

Dates: 23 May  –  24 June 2016

Place: Washington, DC USA

Organizers:

• ICCROM
• The Smithsonian Institution, United States

In cooperation with

Prince Claus Fund, Cultural Emergency Response Programme (CER)

Full announcement here!

#culturecannotwait