Resilient Futures Collective

Operating as both a creativity incubator and a multidisciplinary research capability, the RFC draws on the expertise of core specialists drawn from all UNSW Faculties active in understanding and mitigating the cascading and cumulative impacts of natural hazards and related disturbances.

Applying a wide lens of all-hazards risk reduction and resilience building the RFC works independently where opportunity and needs warrant and collaboratively with specialist UNSW research groups and networks to support linking expertise in adaptive and unique ways to address the emergent policy and developmental needs of communities, local, state, and federal government, and the private sector.

Many post-disaster/crisis investigations into causes & enabling co-factors have noted precursor conditions (vulnerabilities) and triggering events leading to the emergence of disruptions with effects that then cascade into other impacts: with cumulative and often counter-intuitive effects. 

The RFC’s approach to analysis and option development is framed around a ‘Crisis Continuum’ model that details cascading impacts charactersied by uncertainty, ignorance, contested governance and surprise: all in the context of complex interactions across time and spatial scales. 

Our aims are to:

• Bring together insight from unique combinations of UNSW capability to explore options for building and sustaining resilience in communities, local economies, and the environments.
• Focus on defining options (with communities, and both public and private sector groups) for interrupting the causal chain at specific stages of crisis growth: pre-conditions and triggers; emergence of an issues/threats; disruptions/effects; cascading impacts; and feedback effects.   
• Pursue these outcomes through conventional research & development and via thought leadership and collaborative activities with communities, the private sector and government.

Leanne Close APM - Coordinator - BizRebuild (Business Council of Australia)

BizRebuild is a business-led initiative, developed by the Business Council of Australia, to provide practical and on the ground assistance to small and local businesses left devastated by the bushfires and floods. It is designed specifically to help businesses recover to create jobs, rebuild stronger communities and restore thriving local economies.

As Chief Economist of PRD Real Estate Dr Mardiasmo monitors a wide variety of macro and microeconomic trends, both within and external to Australia, that directly and indirectly impact the Australian residential real estate (housing) market. Dr Mardiasmo serves on the Reserve Bank of Australia Liaison Program, acting as an independent professional from within the property industry.

Professor Andy Pitman – UNSW Climate Change Research Centre

Guy Richardson is Business Continuity Coordinator at Icon Water (The Utility Company providing potable water and sewerage services to the Natipjal Capital).  He is has overall responsibility for the development and implementation of Icon Water's business continuity plans, including alignment of BCP functions with Icon's emergency management arrangements.

Christian Fjäder is CEO of the Geostrategic Intelligence Group (GIG), Finland.  He was formerly Director, Policy, Planning and Analysis at the Finnish National Emergency Supply Agency (NESA).