Susan Davie

Susan Davie

End-user
About
Susan Davie

Susan Dave is the Manager Community Connections at the Victorian State Emergency Service. Susan began her career as a Registered Nurse and moved into emergency management working for the Victorian Government. She previously worked as the Senior Policy Advisor at Save the Children Australia, working on policy and advocacy for the inclusion of the unique needs of children in all emergency management plans along with operational response when Save the Children respond to children’s needs in disasters. Susan is currently a PhD candidate at Monash University.

Lead end user

Children represent the most vulnerable demographic group in disasters – across the globe it is estimated that 30-50% of fatalities are children - while they are also most vulnerable to psychosocial impacts. Early research indicates that children are a resource for reducing current disaster risks and can also mitigate future risks.

The role of children’s disaster education in managing risk has been recognised as a major priority in the federal government’s National Strategy for Disaster Resilience. Yet, despite a recent surge in child-centred disaster research, the social, psychological, economic and political mechanisms that enable children to both understand and take action to reduce disaster risk remain largely unexplored and the evidence-base for best-practice remains limited.

This project is conducting a nationwide evaluation of programs and strategies based on a child-centred disaster risk reduction framework. It will develop cost-effective programs that reduce the risk and increase resilience for children, schools, households and communities.

The increasing frequency and complexity of natural hazards poses a challenge for community resilience. Communication and education of risk mitigation strategies play an essential role in building and maintaining resilience through preparation and planning by residents.

This project combined expertise in communication, social and consumer psychology, and disaster and emergency management. It identified barriers and enablers in residents’ decision making, preparing, and planning by examining residents’ intended use of different types of triggers for action during hazards. This included when to start evacuating and what information source to use, with the aim of trying to understand why some residents form a better-quality household plan with safer intended triggers than other residents.

The Recovery Capitals (ReCap) project aimed to promote wellbeing after disasters by examining the disaster recovery evidence base and producing a set of resources to help guide recovery efforts. The project developed a suite of resources that serve a range of purposes and are designed to guide disaster recovery efforts across different community contexts.
Research team:
This project focused on the two behaviours most frequently associated with flood fatalities: driving into floodwater in a motor vehicle, and recreating in floodwater. As the project comprised a number of studies it generated a substantial number of findings and insights, which have been condensed into a series of practitioner-focused Research into Practice briefs and a series of short videos to showcase key research findings and augment the briefs. Based on the research findings, the project team have led the co-development of National Community Service Announcements for flood with AIDR, the ABC and AFAC. Survey tools and findings about how people behave, perceive risks, and make decisions around floodwater were developed through this project and the research findings can be used to inform more targeted communications and safety-related training. The survey tools themselves can be used as an engagement tool both with communities and SES personnel. Surveys with SES personnel about entering floodwater included evaluation of organisational safety climate as well as risk taking behaviour, and the data provides a baseline against which a number of SES jurisdictions could evaluate work health and safety improvements and the effectiveness of a range of safety interventions.
Research team:
Disaster resilience education: a practice framework for Australian emergency management agencies
29 Jun 2017
Disaster resilience education for children and young people has been identified as a key mechanism...
An Evidence-Based Practice Framework for Children's Disaster Education
18 Aug 2015
Disaster education for children has been identified as a key stragety for increasing disaster...
Children and Youth in Disasters: A Co-Produced Program of Research
18 Aug 2015
Children represent the most vulnerable demographic group in disasters.  The world health...
The role of children in disasters: A program of research
25 Aug 2014
Children represent the most vulnerable demographic group in disasters.  

Resources credited

Type Released Title Download Key Topics
HazardNoteEdition 21 Oct 2015 Turning warnings into action PDF icon Save (236.32 KB) communication, tsunami, warnings

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