Thinking systemically for disaster resilience

What can the toilet paper shortages that took place in the early days of the COVID pandemic teach us about understanding systemic risk and enabling transformation? The UNDRR has identified that a linear approach to managing risk is no longer sufficient, given the systemic nature of disaster risk.

About this workshop

The Profiling Australia’s Vulnerability report identifies that:

For the most part, our existing lifestyles and daily activities are heavily dependent on interconnected systems for the delivery of essential services when we need them (e.g. energy, water, food, health and education services, transport, and communications). These systems reflect a chain of accumulated decisions and choices made over generations, in different circumstances and with different priorities (Australian Government, Department of Home Affairs 2018, Profiling Australia’s Vulnerability: The interconnected causes and cascading effects of systemic disaster risk, p4)

This interactive and engaging workshop will lead participants through a learning experience aimed at thinking systemically about complex issues. Together, we will pull apart the systems generating increasingly volatile and complex disasters and collectively imagine radical transformations for resilience.

This professional development session is based on systems thinking models that have been successfully used worldwide to ignite transformative change and delivered by experienced practitioners.

Join us as we delve into the mindsets, structures and patterns that are driving hazards to become disasters that are more frequent, severe, compounding and cascading.

What participants will learn

Participants will learn how to use systems thinking to not only understand the challenges we face but, critically, to identify leverage points for transforming our systems for the better.

Participants will come away with:

a deep understanding of systems thinking and the systems driving our current context
hope for the future and a vision for radical transformation
practical skills that they can apply in almost any context
connections with other change-makers across the system.

Presenters

Presentations from experienced policy makers and practitioners will set the context for the importance of understanding systemic disaster risk and systems.

Dr Isabel Cornes - Australian Institute for Disaster Resilience
Dr Neville Ellis - Department of Fire and Emergency Services, WA
Dr Zoё D'Arcy - Monash University
Dr Adriana Keating- Monash University
Paul Ryan - Australian Resilience Centre
John Richardson - Australian Institute for Disaster Resilience

Workshop outline

Time	Activity	Presenter/facilitator
9.30am-9.45am	Open, welcome and scene-setting	John Richardson
9.45am-10.00am	Riskscape context	Dr Isabel Cornes
10.00am-10.30am	What does thinking systemically mean for emergency management?	Dr Neville Ellis
10.30am-11.00am	Morning tea
11.00am-12.30pm	How to think systemically	Dr Adriana Keating Dr Zoё D'Arcy Paul Ryan
12.30pm-1.00pm	Lunch
1.00pm-2.45pm	How to think systemically (continued)	Dr Adriana Keating Dr Zoё D'Arcy Paul Ryan
2.45pm-3.15pm	What do you need to think about systemic disaster risk?	John Richardson
3.15pm-3.30pm	Closing comments	John Richardson

Acknowledgements

The day is hosted by the Australian Institute for Disaster Resilience as part of its Networking and Capability Development program and contributes to the Understanding Risk Priority of the National Disaster Risk Reduction Framework.

AIDR acknowledges funding support from the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA).

Professional Development Program

Date