Every organisation is unique so there is no one-size-fits-all approach to building organisational resilience to disasters and emergencies. However, through our research we have identified some key capacities and actions taken by organisations that can bounce back from disasters and emergencies that are common to most organisations. We have consolidated these into the Six Steps to Disaster Resilience. Complete our benchmarking survey to find out how disaster-prepared your organisation is and which steps you need to focus on to improve. The information, templates and links in each of the Six Steps will help you to take action.
Introduction
What we are trying to achieve through the Six Steps is community organisations that can 'bounce back' after disasters and emergencies, because when they don't bounce back, people and communities experiencing poverty and disadvantage are likely to be severely affected. However, community organisations are generally not well prepared for disasters and emergencies. Community organisations need to step up to their role in building organisations and communities that are resilient in the face of disasters and emergencies.
LeadingDeveloping disaster resilience requires strong leadership.
Communities and community organisations that can ‘bounce back’ from disasters and emergencies are important. Organisations that are not well-prepared will not be able to support their clients and communities to recover. Community organisations are generally not well prepared for disasters and emergencies and so it is particularly important that the leadership of community organisations steps up to the role of leading their organisation's disaster preparedness.
BuildingBeing disaster resilient means being linked with local networks.
Networks must include emergency services and community organisations. Effective networks can: share expertise and knowledge; build better local emergency management plans; enable collaboration and coordination in planning for and responding to disasters and emergencies. People who are particularly vulnerable to the impacts of disasters need to be linked to these networks.
KnowingBeing disaster resilient means knowing and understanding the risks your organisation faces.
Identifying risks is not a simple process. It requires 'what if' thinking and analysis. Examples and scenario planning are a great way of getting the idea of what’s involved in 'what if' thinking. There are risk registers that can help you with this work, particularly the risks from things that haven’t happened yet. When risks are identified they can be incorporated into a risk register as part of your risk management process.
ManagingBeing disaster resilient means effectively managing your risks.
There are very practical ways that organisations manage risks. While each organisation and the risks to be managed may be different it is useful to have a plan for disasters and emergencies. This Step highlights some of the core elements of a Disaster Plan.
PreparingBeing disaster resilient means being prepared to help keep people safe and get them back on their feet after a disaster or emergency.
Community organisations are well placed to support clients, staff and volunteers to become more prepared. There are simple actions you can take now to help people for when they may be at their most vulnerable, during an emergency; a time when you may not be able to support them in the way you usually would.
LearningBeing disaster resilient means learning and continuously improving our preparedness plans.
Building disaster resilient is an ongoing process that requires updating plans for disasters and emergencies, testing plans and improving plans. A key part of improving plans is being well connected and up to date so it is important to participate in local events that help you and others prepare for disasters and emergencies and to share what you have learned with others
