Tegan Larin

Dr Tegan Larin is a Research Fellow in the School of Engineering at RMIT University, investigating human behaviour during disasters. Her interdisciplinary research brings together perspectives from sociology, political and feminist theory, policy, and design. Tegan’s recent work focuses on natural hazards, with particular attention to emergency communication, evacuation decision-making, and lived experience during crisis events. She is currently leading a qualitative study of the August 8, 2023 Maui wildfires, funded by the U.S National Institute of Standards and Technology, examining how residents and tourists made sense of rapidly evolving conditions in the absence of reliable communication. She also contributes to national research on multi-hazard warning systems and community preparedness across diverse and regional populations in Australia. With a background in community organisations and gender-based violence research, Tegan brings a grounded, human-centred approach to research and evaluation. She regularly disseminates findings to academic, policy, and practitioner audiences, and has contributed to national forums hosted by Natural Hazards Research Australia and the Australian Institute for Disaster Resilience.