THE Cairns Regional Council, Deaf Services Queensland, Centacare Migrant Services and ARC Disability Services are joint winners in the Local Government category for the Be Ready, Cairns! project.
Minister for Justice Michael Keenan said the Resilient Australia Awards recognise the outstanding contributions communities were making to disaster management, including risk assessment and mitigation, education, training and research, community awareness and engagement, as well as response and recovery.
“Many of this year’s awarded projects are effectively addressing local needs and building a greater understanding about potential risks through education and increased community participation,” Mr Keenan said.
A total of 24 projects have been recognised from 160 entries.
The Cairns Regional Council, Deaf Services Queensland, Centacare Migrant Services and ARC Disability Services are amongst the 17 winners at the state and territory level who became national finalists.
The specialised resources produced for Be Ready, Cairns! are free and include Auslan DVDs, YouTube clips, Braille and talking books as well as a large print brochure in 10 languages.
Member for Leichhardt Warren Entsch said this was an important community project for the Cairns’ region and congratulated the four organisations for their collaboration.
“The Cairns region is vulnerable to natural disasters for many reasons including location, geography, high populations in low-lying areas, a transient resident base and high tourist visitation. We also have a number of residents who are particularly at risk through their age, disability, country of origin and income level.
“These at-risk communities have been the priority in a targeted public engagement program to grow disaster resilience by working together to share knowledge, raise awareness and develop response strategies.
“The success of the program was fully demonstrated through community preparation for, and in response to, Tropical Cyclone Ita in April this year,” Mr Entsch said.
“The work of these organisations, groups and individuals are helping to prepare our nation for future adverse events,” Mr Keenan ended.
A full list of the award winners can be found at: https://www.em.gov.au/
