Stronger guidance of community recovery planning EGSC was already supporting community development as part of its Council Plan priority of The development of the community recovery developing resilient and adaptable communities. program in EGS suggests that a more strongly EGSC’s development of its proposed Adaptation for guided approach help municipal councils and Recovery project was part of this work. recovery agencies improve community recovery planning, and the DHHS funded Adaptation for Recovery, which would effectiveness of interventions arising from such involve intensive work with vulnerable communities. planning. DHHS also supported a community body, Regional Arts Victoria, to undertake a second art-based recovery Municipal councils face many demands in coordinating project and managing recovery However, the work of a [26, 53]. [9]. council with its communities is a central part of RDV funded a community arts project, business recovery. Where community recovery is compromised recovery and resilience projects and community by poor communication, inequitable allocation of recovery events to be provided by EGSC. RDV also assistance or separately funded the an absence of visible activity, residents can easily East Gippsland Network of Neighbourhood Houses’ become angry towards authorities. This can become Study Circles project from its Resilient Community entrenched, inhibiting residents’ ability to deal with their Program [70, 75]. changed circumstances [13, 17, 76, 77]. In considering proposals, RDV found that communities In EGS a number of factors affected community had not been sufficiently engaged in planning the recovery planning. EGSC, RDV and DHHS were projects put forward for funding. RDV addressed this, involved in developing and funding several working with EGSC and East Gippsland Network of community recovery projects and a community Neighbourhood resilience project. Houses to ensure the project designs allow However, there was insufficient coordination of residents to guide the initiatives once they were this program as a whole. underway [70, 75]. Bonang local incident management meeting (image courtesy of Lorelee Cockerill, Community Recovery Facilitator, Orbost Regional Health)
Stronger guidance of community recovery planning The development of the community recovery program in EGS suggests that a more strongly guided approach help municipal councils and recovery agencies improve community recovery planning, and the effectiveness of interventions arising from such planning. Municipal councils face many demands in coordinating and managing recovery [9]. However, the work of a council with its communities is a central part of recovery. Where community recovery is compromised by poor communication, inequitable allocation of assistance or an absence of visible activity, residents can easily become angry towards authorities. This can become entrenched, inhibiting residents’ ability to deal with their changed circumstances [13, 17, 76, 77]. In EGS a number of factors affected community recovery planning. EGSC, RDV and DHHS were involved in developing and funding several community recovery projects and a community resilience project. However, there was insufficient coordination of this program as a whole. EGSC was already supporting community development as part of its Council Plan priority of developing resilient and adaptable communities. EGSC’s development of its proposed Adaptation for Recovery project was part of this work. DHHS funded Adaptation for Recovery, which would involve intensive work with vulnerable communities. DHHS also supported a community body, Regional Arts Victoria, to undertake a second art-based recovery project [26, 53]. RDV funded a community arts project, business recovery and resilience projects and community recovery events to be provided by EGSC. RDV also separately funded the East Gippsland Network of Neighbourhood Houses’ Study Circles project from its Resilient Community Program [70, 75]. In considering proposals, RDV found that communities had not been sufficiently engaged in planning the projects put forward for funding. RDV addressed this, working with EGSC and East Gippsland Network of Neighbourhood Houses to ensure the project designs allow residents to guide the initiatives once they were underway [70, 75]. Bonang local incident management meeting (image courtesy of Lorelee Cockerill, Community Recovery Facilitator, Orbost Regional Health)
Review_of_community_recovery_following_the_2013-14_Victorian_bushfires.docx