by Luis Perez

Disaster management protocols can’t thrive if affected communities don’t have a seat at the table.

Only four months into 2026, Australia is already grappling with the unrelenting impacts of climate change.  

The year commenced with bushfires spreading through Victoria at unprecedented speed, scorching more than 400,000 hectares – an area bigger than the Australian Capital Territory (ACT).

The flames brought with them irreplaceable loss: human lives, homes, livestock, wildlife and the disruption of entire communities, roads and businesses.

More recently, Severe Tropical Cyclone Narelle wreaked havoc across Western Australia, destroying crops, marine ecosystems and even turning the sky blood red.

These traumatic scenes are, sadly, only the prelude to a far less visible ordeal.

“Recovery can be worse than the disaster itself,” says Dr Tim Heffernan, an anthropologist at The Australian National University (ANU).

Heffernan, whose research specialises in understanding how communities recover from life-altering events, has written extensively about disaster resilience.

“Recovery is not a linear path. It’s not a quick process. It’s protracted and complex and often changes the community in quite fundamental ways,” he says.

“The issues that emerge in the aftermath of disaster make it difficult. For many regional communities in Australia, it means years of living with trauma, isolation, inequality and community disagreement.”

As extreme weather events become more frequent and severe, the Australian government must take bold action to support local communities.

But Heffernan warns our current disaster recovery protocols are not entirely up to the challenge.  

Recovery from the bottom up

Too often, governments prioritise the more “tangible” side of disaster recovery: rebuilding homes, clearing roads, relandscaping the environment etc.

While essential, impacted communities require more than physical infrastructure to move forward – but decisions about what they truly need are rarely theirs to make.

“In many western countries, disaster management takes a top-down, even militaristic approach,” Heffernan says.

“That means resources, funding and decision-making power sit with politicians at the very top of the federal and state level, rather than with communities.”

Typically, state governments operate under a 100-day post-disaster mandate. After that, Heffernan explains, they usually withdraw – leaving communities to cope with decisions they had little role in shaping.

A bottom-up approach, he says, could help democratise this process.   

“Communities should be front and centre in every aspect of disaster management, response and recovery,” Heffernan says.

“Research shows that when disaster management protocols recognise a community’s knowledge, skills and resources, they tend to fare best.”

In 2021, fieldwork in the Snowy Valleys brought the ANU anthropologist and other researchers together with towns and villages affected by the black summer bushfires.

The team worked with locals to co-design recovery models tailored to each community and their idea of safety.

“This initiative showed how top-down approaches can be flipped, building awareness so that, if a new disaster strikes, people know how to bring the community together, identify vulnerable members and navigate power structures,” Heffernan says.

“Many of the issues residents raised focused on social infrastructure, places that nurture social networks and that they rely on for information around disaster preparation.

“For example, some called for upgrades to local town halls, venues used not just for emergency meetings, but for birthday parties and community gatherings that keep social ties strong year-round.”

The power of connection

Experts say one of the best ways to deal with emotional distress after a disaster is to talk about it with friends and family.

The importance of kinship and social connection is something that Heffernan discusses in his forthcoming book, Compassionate solidarity: Crisis, recovery and kincentric politics in Iceland.

The ANU researcher, whose PhD explored how Icelanders recovered from the 2008 economic crisis, says sharing lived experiences, and hearing those of fellow survivors, can be a catalyst for recovery in difficult times.

“It allows people to see their own experiences reflected in others and to learn how someone else overcame adversity,” Heffernan says.

As part of the HowWeSurvive initiative, Heffernan and his colleagues at UNSW Sydney put this idea to the test developing an interactive storytelling map where people can share their survival stories online.

The platform has created a space for voices often overlooked by media coverage and official inquiries.

Ultimately, Heffernan says resilience is built in small, consistent acts of showing up for others.

“It doesn’t need to be like best friends hanging out. Something as simple as sitting together with your neighbour over a cup of coffee is really meaningful,” he says.

This is an abridged article that originally appeared in The ANU Reporter 13 April 2026. Read full story here.