Centre for Risk and Community Safety
About us
The Centre for Risk and Community Safety was established in 2001 and is a collaborative research program by (the School of Mathematical and Geospatial Sciences, RMIT University), the Fenner School for Environment and Society, Australian National University), and Emergency Management Australia (now merged into the Attorney General’s Department, Canberra). CRaCS is a leading group member of the RMIT Disaster Research Network.
Aims
- To undertake applied research supporting the achievement of safe, resilient communities, through continuous improvement in emergency management.
- To help identify and satisfy the strategic research needs of emergency management.
Our primary focus is on Australia, but it is important that the Centre’s work contribute to and draw on the material provided through global research and experience.
Recent achievements and activities
- Bushfire community safety research based at CRaCS and led by John Handmer was showcased as one of twenty best case studies of research impact in the Excellence in Innovation assessment by the Australian Technology Network of universities and the Group of Eight.
- The bushfire community safety research based at CRaCS and led by John Handmer was also shortlisted for a 2013 Excellence in Innovation award from the Cooperative Research Centre Association.
- CRaCS and the Natural Disaster Management Research Initiative (NDMRI) at the University of Melbourne co-hosted a seminar at RMIT University on Crisis and disaster communication for leaders by Bob Jensen, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs at the US Department of Homeland Security.
- John Handmer, Briony Towers and Blythe McLennan were invited to present at the ‘Regenerating ... People, Place, Prosperity, Preparedness’ conference in April/May 2013 at Kinglake, organised by the Kinglake Resilience Committee.
- The centre co-hosted a one-day workshop on “sharing responsibility for implementing the National Strategy for Disaster Resilience” in Sydney on 13th March 2013. The workshop was a collaboration between RMIT University, the Bushfire CRC, University of New South Wales, NSW Office of Environment and Heritage, the National Climate Change Adaptation Research Facility’s (NCCARF) Emergency Management and Settlements & Infrastructure (ACCARNSI) networks. Over 90 representatives of government agencies, research, and NGOs participated.
- Briony Towers travelled to the Philippines in February 2013 to conduct an evaluation of Save the Children's child-centred disaster risk reduction programmes in urban Manila and rural Naga.
- CRaCS made a submission in January 2013 to the Senate Standing Committees on Environment and Communications Inquiry on ‘Recent trends in and preparedness for extreme weather events’.
- Adriana Keating and John Handmer presented at the Fourth International Symposium on Fire Economics, Planning, and Policy: Climate Change and Wildfires Mexico City, Mexico November 5-11, 2012.
- Adriana Keating and John Handmer are contributing authors, in conjunction with colleagues from Victoria University, of an NCCARF report Valuing Adaptation Under Rapid Change, released in June 2013.
- Muhibuddin Usamah completed his doctoral dissertation in late 2012 on the topic of land tenure security and resilience to multiple (natural) disasters in Camalig Municipality, Province of Albay, the Philippines.
- Professor John Hander and Dr Briony Towers presented research at the 4th International Disaster and Risk Conference IDRC Davos 2012.
- Dr Karyn Bosomworth, Dr Blythe McLennan and Dr Josh Whittaker presented research at the AFAC/ Bushfire CRC Annual conference in Perth in August 2012.
- Completion of the IPCC Special Report on Extrememes (2012) and the Summary for Policy Makers. The director of the Centre, Professor John Handmer, is a Coordinating Lead Author for the report and an author of the summary. CRACs members Adriana Keating and Monique Ladds (formerly of CRaCs) are contributing authors.
Contact us
For further information, please email a member of the Centre for Risk and Community Safety team, or write to us at:
Centre for Risk and Community Safety
School of Mathematical & Geospatial Sciences
GPO Box 2476
Melbourne, VIC 3001
Australia
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