Grant to build decision making capacity in WA

The decision making capacities of local government during natural hazard emergencies is set to improve with a grant awarded to fund new research into the topic.

The Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC was awarded the grant as part of the All West Australian’s Reducing Emergencies (AWARE) program, run by the Department of Fire and Emergency Services, Western Australia.

The program aims to enhance WA’s emergency management arrangements by investing in capacity building and preparedness activities, at local and district levels.

The CRC project Building capacity in effective decision making for natural hazard emergencies within local government has been awarded almost $24,000. The research will be conducted by CRC researchers from the University of Tasmania, A/Prof Benjamin Brooks and Dr Steve Curnin, in collaboration with the Western Australian Local Government Association (WALGA).

Melissa Pexton, Manager Emergency Management at the Western Australia Local Government Association, said that the partnership with the CRC and research expertise will build further capacity in the local government sector – which carries the responsibility for recovery in the state.

“We are looking forward to bringing this unique training opportunity to WA over two days with up to 40 local governments. This will complement our existing training offering in emergency management, providing the sector with relevant skills to gain further confidence in their coordination and leadership tasks,” said Ms Pexton.

The work aims to improve decision-making skills associated with the management of bias, psychological safety, situational awareness, pressure management and divergent thinking.

The project will develop additional leadership capability for local government representatives involved in recovery and deliver training courses, among a suite of learning resources that WALGA can use to educate decision making representatives.