Now in its 22^nd year, the awards recognise outstanding contributions in each state and territory across six categories: community, business, local government, government, school and photography.

The awards recognise a wide range of initiatives with past projects centred on risk assessment and mitigation, mental health and wellbeing, education, training and research, and community engagement, as well as response and recovery.

State and territory winners are considered for national awards, along with projects entered directly to the national awards – projects selected as national finalists will benefit from national exposure through a range of communication channels.

Entries in the 2021 awards program must relate to projects or initiatives that commenced after 1 January 2019, or demonstrate significant outcomes or enhancements since 1 January 2019. 

The Resilient Australia Awards is proudly sponsored by the Australian Government in partnership with the states and territories and managed by the Australian Institute for Disaster Resilience (AIDR).

Further information on the program structure and submission requirements are contained in the guidelines.

The Resilient Australia Awards is a two-tiered program. Submissions are judged in the state or territory they are submitted from, with winners from each state and territory considered for national awards.

State and territory award categories

	Resilient Australia Business Award Open to businesses and the private sector, including tertiary colleges and universities.
	Resilient Australia Government Award Open to state and federal government agencies.
	Resilient Australia Local Government Award Open to local governments and local government associations.
	Resilient Australia Schools Award Open to all public and private pre-school, primary and secondary schools only. School-related projects managed by other organisations should be submitted in other categories.
	Resilient Australia Photography Award Open to individuals and groups. Submissions will not be accepted without the permission of the copyright holder.
	Resilient Australia Community Award Open to communities, community based or focussed organisations, and non-government organisations.

Multi-jurisdictional projects

National award categories

	Resilient Australia Award State and territory winners in the business and government categories will be considered alongside multi-jurisdictional projects.
	Resilient Australia Mental Health and Wellbeing Award Open to all projects focussing on the mental health and wellbeing of Australian communities before, during and after a disaster.
	Resilient Australia Local Government Award State and territory winners in the local government category will be considered.
	Resilient Australia Schools Award State and territory winners in the school category will be considered.
	Resilient Australia Photography Award The People's Choice photography winner in each state and territory will be considered. The winning photograph will be considered for the cover of the January 2022 issue of AJEM.
	Resilient Australia Community Award State and territory winners in the community category will be considered. The winning organisation will receive a cash prize of $5,000.

Award category process map

This process map demonstrates how the jurisdictional award categories link through to the national awards. 

Assessment questions

Winning projects will reflect key principles of the National Strategy for Disaster Resilience and the National Disaster Risk Framework. 

1. In 150 words or less, provide an executive summary of your project or initiative and its benefits.
   
   Consider the following questions in developing your response:
   
   
   • How would you pitch your project to media outlets?
   • How would you summarise your project for social media posts?
   • Will your executive summary spark interest from the judging panel?
     
     
     
2. Describe your project or initiative purpose, design and aims.
   
   Consider the following questions in developing your response:
    
   • What is the purpose of the project?
   • Where is the project based?
   • Who is involved in the project? Who benefits?
   • What are the achievements and outcomes of the project?
   • Does the project make use of technology? Was this beneficial to the outcome?
   • How is the project going beyond 'business as usual'?
     
     
     
3. Provide specific examples of how the project or initiative has supported the community to build resilience to disasters and emergencies. Highlight aspects that make the project sustainable and/or transferable to other communities. 
   
   

   Consider the following questions in developing your response:

   • What have the changes in the community been as a result of your project?
   • What evidence can you provide?
   • Has the project been evaluated?
   • Could other communities use your project as a model?
   • How can it be adapted to other communities?
     
     
     
4. What were the findings and achievements of the project or initiative? 
   
   

   Consider the following questions in developing your response:

   • How did the project promote or encourage sharing the responsibility for disaster resilience/community safety among multiple sectors/groups?
   • How does your project reflect key ideas in the National Strategy for Disaster Resilience?
   • How has the community been directly engaged through the project?
   • How has the community responded to the project?
     
     
     
5. Describe how your project or initiative is contributing to an inclusive Australia.
   
   Consider the following questions in developing your response:
   
   
   • In what ways does your project engage with and provide benefit to diverse groups within the Australian community?
   • In what ways does your project foster inclusive approaches to disaster resilience?
   • How does your project highlight the needs, voices and achievements of the estimated 1 in 5 Australians with a disability?
   • How does your project take into consideration the mental wellbeing of the community before, during and after a disaster?

At the state and territory level, submissions for the Resilient Australia Photography Award are judged through a popular vote (People's Choice), conducted online via the AIDR Facebook page. All approved photography submissions will be published in a Facebook album, with each 'like' or 'reaction' counted as a vote. The state or territory that the photo was submitted for will not be published. 

At the conclusion of the voting period, the album will be temporarily disabled and AIDR will tally and record the 'votes'. The photo with the most likes/reactions from each state and territory will win its jurisdictions Resilient Australia Photography Award. Once the votes have been counted, the content will be made available again on Facebook, however subsequent likes and reactions will not be considered votes. 

The public vote for the 2021 Resilient Australia Photography Award will be conducted 17 June-1 July 2021.

National Photography Award

The winning photos from each state and territory will be considered for the Resilient Australia National Photography Award.

The National Photography Award winner will be decided by the Editorial Committee of the Australian Journal of Emergency Management (AJEM). The number of votes a photo received during the public vote will not be taken into consideration at the national level. 

The winning photograph will also be considered for the cover of the January 2022 issue of AJEM.