DisasterWISE hosted Senator Sheldon – Special Envoy for Disaster Recovery –  to engage in a rich dialogue with people of lived and learned experience of community-led recovery in June.

Whilst recently traveling through East Gippsland with Pete Williams, who facilitates the monthly Black Summer Community-Recovery Committee Link-Up , Senator Sheldon posed the question; what has worked well with community-led recovery and how can we get better at it? to residents across East Gippsland.  Pete then invited Senator Sheldon along to the DisasterWISE online Get-together so he could pose the same question to community members with lived experience of community-led recovery across Australia.

Senator Sheldon generously shared stories from his own visits and experience, stressing the value of learning through listening and asking questions. Sheldon drew on the Fitzroy Crossing disaster as a lesson in community-driven recovery, highlighting the significance of lived experience in shaping recovery strategies.

The conversation continued in small break out rooms, where participants were asked “what has worked well” and to share some stories and examples from their own experiences. Some of the common threads were;

• Identified the need for coordinated and holistic recovery strategies.
• Criticised short-term contracts and emphasised the importance of long-term, flexible funding arrangements.
• Addressed the necessity of mental health support for leaders and contractors.
• Advocated for maintaining the community’s essence while fostering resilience and connection.
• Suggested incorporating philanthropic contributions into recovery contracts to enhance community rebuilding.

The groups also touched on the importance of choosing local leaders which could be via an election or through an existing representative group, the importance of community led recovery predicated on ongoing support and collaboration with recovery agencies and capturing the voice of the community and the role of media, both traditional and new, in amplifying community voices.

After reconvening from the breakouts, the conversation flowed from the issues participants were raising around;

• Insurance and financial accessibility
• community-led mapping
• trust and community governance
• documentation and sharing recovery processes
• psychological support and
• realistic timeframes.

The knowledge in the room was palpable and shared in generosity and with respect in the hope of shifting practices for communities who will face future events.

A report was collated from the discussion and can be viewed in the DisasterWISE Knowledge library. This report was shared with Senator Sheldon, who we hope to invite back to participate in future DisasterWISE conversations.

Photo Credit: C. Cooper