- Charles Darwin University, The Northern Institute, Department MemberUniversity of Iceland, Department of Geography and Tourism, Alumnus, and 2 moreadd
- Deanne Bird’s PhD entitled ‘Social dimensions of volcanic hazards, risk and emergency response procedures in southern... moreDeanne Bird’s PhD entitled ‘Social dimensions of volcanic hazards, risk and emergency response procedures in southern Iceland’ was awarded in 2010 as a joint degree from the University of Iceland, Iceland and Macquarie University, Australia. Since then, Deanne has been working as a Social Science Research Fellow at Risk Frontiers, Natural Hazards Research Centre at Macquarie University. During this period she has gained extensive research experience in disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation working with households, communities, academics, emergency management agencies and, local, state and federal governments.
Deanne has a growing record of winning research grants and consultancies and her publications to date include 22 peer-reviewed journal articles, 1 edited book (in press) and 5 book chapters. Deanne’s work has been cited over 460 times scoring an h-index of 10 (Google Scholar). She has delivered over 50 conference presentations with a growing number as invited speaker and is an invited reviewer for high profile journals including Nature Climate Change and Nature Scientific Reports.
Deanne’s research interests include:
• Developing innovative research methodologies including participatory approaches for identifying and assessing vulnerabilities and resiliencies among urban, rural and Indigenous communities
• Assessing the effectiveness of traditional and newer technologies in risk communication, including Facebook, Twitter, etc.
• Exploring human behaviour before, during and after disaster to inform the development of appropriate disaster risk reduction strategies, policies and practices
• Investigating the impact of disasters on the tourism sector and how we can best develop emergency management strategies that suit the needs and vulnerabilities of transient populationsedit
Research Interests: Demography, Volcanology, Fire and Emergency Services, Flood Risk Management, Community Engagement & Participation, and 14 moreDisaster risk management, Risk and Vulnerability, Natural Hazards, Risk communication, Disaster Response, Risk and Vulnerability - Natural Hazards, Disaster Risk Communication, Emergency Management, Tourism, Disaster Response and Recovery, Disaster risk reduction, Volcano, Volcanic hazards, and Evacuation
Cultural sites are particularly important to Indigenous peoples, their identity, cosmology and sociopolitical traditions. The benefits of local control, and a lack of professional resources, necessitate the development of planning tools... more
Cultural sites are particularly important to Indigenous peoples, their identity, cosmology and sociopolitical traditions. The benefits of local control, and a lack of professional resources, necessitate the development of planning tools that support independent Indigenous cultural site adaptation. We devised and tested a methodology for non-heritage professionals to analyse options that address site loss, build site resilience and build local adaptive capacity. Indigenous rangers from Kakadu National Park and the Djelk Indigenous Protected Area, Arnhem Land, Australia, were engaged as fellow researchers via a participatory action research methodology. Rangers rejected coastal defences and relocating sites, instead prioritising routine use of a risk field survey, documentation of vulnerable sites using new digital technologies and widely communicating the climate change vulnerability of sites via a video documentary. Results support the view that rigorous approaches to cultural site ...
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This article investigates the implementation of disaster risk reduction education for children in Indonesia. In the last decade, education programmes related to this subject have been promoted as capable of reducing disaster losses and... more
This article investigates the implementation of disaster risk reduction education for children in Indonesia. In the last decade, education programmes related to this subject have been promoted as capable of reducing disaster losses and increasing resilience, based on several studies that have identified positive outcomes. Therefore, it is critical to evaluate and address any potential challenges that might impede their success. The article uses a case study in Jakarta, a rapidly growing megacity that is highly prone to disasters and natural hazards, especially floods and fires, to explore the scaling up and sustainability of disaster risk reduction in Indonesian schools. Based on previous studies, a new approach was developed for evaluating the implementation of education programmes related to these subjects. This study captured the perspectives of children, school personnel, and non-governmental organisations on the challenges of scaling up the implementation of disaster risk reduc...
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... Section 2: Australian Centre for Sustainable Catchments, University of Southern Queensland Peter Best Torben Marcussen Shahbaz Mushtaq Roger Stone Section 3: School of Geography and Environmental Science, Monash University Margaret... more
... Section 2: Australian Centre for Sustainable Catchments, University of Southern Queensland Peter Best Torben Marcussen Shahbaz Mushtaq Roger Stone Section 3: School of Geography and Environmental Science, Monash University Margaret Loughnan ...
There is no doubt that as the world’s population continues to grow and expand in hazardous environments, so too does our vulnerability to disaster. Researching disaster risk is therefore an ongoing challenge requiring a continual process... more
There is no doubt that as the world’s population continues to grow and expand in hazardous environments, so too does our vulnerability to disaster. Researching disaster risk is therefore an ongoing challenge requiring a continual process of generating understanding of the changing environmental and societal characteristics that influence disaster vulnerability. Iceland, as the land of fire and ice, is of no exception. With a changing population, exponential growth in tourism and a volcanic eruption on average every 3–4 years, disaster risk research is of critical importance. Based on questionnaire survey results, interviews with key stakeholders and data derived from Statistics Iceland, this paper considers how residents might respond to a future eruption by examining their experience of the 2010 Eyjafjallajökull eruptions against the changing demographic, economic and political landscape. While authorities were pleased with public response to evacuation orders in 2010, some residents did not evacuate. The reasons for not evacuating were due to caring for others or thinking the warnings were not applicable. Yet, most residents showed respect for authority and acknowledged the necessity of the evacuations. The relatively small, homogenous population of Iceland coupled with its peoples’ desire to cooperate contributed to this success. Within these communities, people are bound together by common beliefs, values and activities. However, the changing social landscape will test this phenomenon. In particular, the region’s economic base is evolving from traditional farming practices to one that is increasingly reliant on tourism. Demographic changes most notably include greater international migration to the South, as well as from the capital region. As the communities diversify, so too will people’s beliefs, values and activities. This paper explores the challenges this diversity brings with respect to generating a proactive public response to future evacuation orders. Furthermore, it highlights the importance of capturing narratives of actions and activities to enhance our understanding of the process of decision-making and the situational factors that add to its complexity.
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41599-018-0205-6
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41599-018-0205-6
Research Interests: Demography, Volcanology, Fire and Emergency Services, Decision Making, Flood Risk Management, and 15 moreCommunity Engagement & Participation, Disaster risk management, Risk and Vulnerability, Natural Hazards, Risk communication, Disaster Response, Risk and Vulnerability - Natural Hazards, Decision Making Under Uncertainty, Disaster Risk Communication, Emergency Management, Tourism, Disaster Response and Recovery, Disaster risk reduction, Volcanic hazards, and Evacuation
Eyjafjallajökull became Iceland’s most infamous volcano in 2010 when the ash cloud from its summit eruption caused unprecedented disruption to the international aviation industry and considerable challenges to local farming communities... more
Eyjafjallajökull became Iceland’s most infamous volcano in 2010 when the ash cloud from its summit eruption caused unprecedented disruption to the international aviation industry and considerable challenges to local farming communities and villages. The summit eruption, which began on 14 April 2010, was preceded by a 24-day long effusive flank eruption that produced spectacular fire-fountain activity and lava flows. The 39-day long summit eruption, however, was far more explosive and resulted in medium-sized jökulhlaups to the north, small jökulhlaups and lahars to the south and considerable ash fall to the east and east-southeast of the volcano. As in other crises in Iceland, the Department of Civil Protection and Emergency Management (DCPEM) coordinated efforts and facilitated crisis communication, while collaborating with the Icelandic Meteorological Office, the Institute of Earth Sciences at the University of Iceland and the National Crisis Coordination Centre. The DCPEM’s role included providing information to the government and its various agencies and feeding information from scientists to local police officials, civil protection committees and the public. Communication with local residents took place through agencies’ websites, the national media and frequent open town hall meetings where representatives of institutions responsible for eruption monitoring, health, safety and livestock handling provided advice. These face-to-face meetings with local residents were critical as ash fall had not affected these areas for over 60 years and plans for dealing with this hazard were not established. This chapter explores these events and in doing so, provides a narrative of crisis coordination and communication in Iceland. The narrative is based on multiple sources, including an analysis of community perspectives of the emergency response and their use and views of the various forms of communication platforms. The chapter also considers the eruptions’ impacts at the local level. This exploration reveals that the trust developed through close communication between all involved prior to and during the eruption increased the effectiveness of crisis communication. The experience gained from the Eyjafjallajökull eruption is important for volcanic crisis communication at a local and international level. While the immediate evacuation plans were effective, the ash fall problems illustrated the need for necessary precautions and broadly defined preparedness strategies.
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This paper documents the analysis of the circumstances surrounding fatalities due to flooding in Australia between 1900 and 2015. This longitudinal investigation is important to understand changing trends in social vulnerability and to... more
This paper documents the analysis of the circumstances surrounding fatalities due to flooding in Australia between 1900 and 2015. This longitudinal investigation is important to understand changing trends in social vulnerability and to inform efficient and strategic risk reduction strategies. The basis of this analysis was PerilAUS, Risk Frontiers' database of historical natural hazard impacts in Australia. This data was augmented and verified using coronial inquest records which provide detailed data concerning the social, demographic and environmental circumstances of each fatality. A statistical analysis of the data was undertaken, examining demographics (age, gender), location (state), seasonality, circumstances surrounding the fatality, environmental factors (e.g. the event intensity) and social factors (e.g. the decisions or actions which led to death). Overall there have been 1859 fatalities identified, with distinct trends in relation to gender, age, activity and reason behind the activity. Flood deaths have been declining. The majority of the fatalities are male (79.3%): however, since the 1960s the proportion of female to male fatalities has increased. Children and young adults (< 29 years) make up the greatest proportion of the fatalities (53.8% of cases where age is known). The highest proportions of fatalities occurred while victims attempted to cross a flood-impacted bridge or road. The recommendations for emergency management policy and practice are discussed, outlining the need for a new approach that accounts for a continuum of measures including regulation and incentive, education and structural intervention.
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There is growing recognition within the Australian emergency management sector of the need to engage communities as core partners, where they are considered equals in risk-related decision-making processes that affect them... more
There is growing recognition within the Australian emergency management sector of the need to engage communities as core partners, where they are considered equals in risk-related decision-making processes that affect them (Attorney-General’s Department 2013). There is, however, little guidance available to practitioners about how best to involve communities in risk reduction processes and little evidence on which to build approaches. To address these gaps, the New South Wales State Emergency Service (NSW SES) instigated a pilot program to investigate and evaluate methods to involve communities in flood emergency planning within three NSW communities. This paper outlines the pilot process, the design of programs and evaluation results.
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Northern Australia is highly exposed to a number of natural hazards including: cyclones and associated storm surges, riverine and flash flooding, heatwaves, coastal erosion, bushfires and drought – some of which might be exacerbated by... more
Northern Australia is highly exposed to a number of natural hazards including: cyclones and associated storm surges, riverine and flash flooding, heatwaves, coastal erosion, bushfires and drought – some of which might be exacerbated by climate change. With an approximate population of 160,000 Indigenous people (29% of the total Indigenous population of Australia) it is critical to develop a multifaceted understanding of how climate change will affect Indigenous communities in northern Australia. Moreover, decisions about how to support Indigenous communities to adapt to and reduce their risks from climate change impacts must be informed by greater understandings of their current adaptive capacities, e.g. why they may be vulnerable or resilient, how they have coped with and adapted to past environmental changes, who is likely to leave, stay or return, and how sustainable communities can be maintained.
This report examines the underlying vulnerabilities, adaptive capacities and population movements of Indigenous people in four communities in northern Australia – Broome in Western Australia; Maningrida and Ngukurr in the Northern Territory; and Wujal Wujal in Queensland. The report addresses the following research questions:
How and why are Indigenous people in northern Australia vulnerable?
How and why are Indigenous people in northern Australia resilient?
How do specific populations differ in terms of their current resilience and adaptive capacity to slow onset changes and extreme weather events?
What role does population movement have as an adaptive response to climate change?
What changes are needed to enable Indigenous communities to enhance their resilience and adaptive capacities for future extreme weather events and other impacts of climate change?
To address these questions, the following four research approaches were taken:
Demographic history and population volatility – An analysis of population volatility, using demographic variables such as age and sex distributions, mobility and migration, and population density. It is believed that communities with excessive population volatility are likely to experience more dramatic disruption as a result of environmental changes.
Land use planning as climate change adaptation – An examination of the role that land use planning and development controls play in creating disasterresilient communities. This was conducted by comparing the land use planning legislation, state-level planning policies, statutory planning schemes, property registration systems and emergency management systems in the Northern Territory, Queensland and Western Australia.
Indigenous views of change and risk – An ethnographic and qualitative study of the relationship that individuals and communities have with their everchanging environment. The investigation examined Indigenous views of change and risk, as well as the broader socioeconomic and political circumstances that impact on their underlying vulnerabilities and capacities to adapt.
Children’s understanding of weather and seasons in Broome – A qualitative investigation of children’s perceptions to provide a more holistic understanding of how changes in weather and climate affect the younger members of the community.
This report examines the underlying vulnerabilities, adaptive capacities and population movements of Indigenous people in four communities in northern Australia – Broome in Western Australia; Maningrida and Ngukurr in the Northern Territory; and Wujal Wujal in Queensland. The report addresses the following research questions:
How and why are Indigenous people in northern Australia vulnerable?
How and why are Indigenous people in northern Australia resilient?
How do specific populations differ in terms of their current resilience and adaptive capacity to slow onset changes and extreme weather events?
What role does population movement have as an adaptive response to climate change?
What changes are needed to enable Indigenous communities to enhance their resilience and adaptive capacities for future extreme weather events and other impacts of climate change?
To address these questions, the following four research approaches were taken:
Demographic history and population volatility – An analysis of population volatility, using demographic variables such as age and sex distributions, mobility and migration, and population density. It is believed that communities with excessive population volatility are likely to experience more dramatic disruption as a result of environmental changes.
Land use planning as climate change adaptation – An examination of the role that land use planning and development controls play in creating disasterresilient communities. This was conducted by comparing the land use planning legislation, state-level planning policies, statutory planning schemes, property registration systems and emergency management systems in the Northern Territory, Queensland and Western Australia.
Indigenous views of change and risk – An ethnographic and qualitative study of the relationship that individuals and communities have with their everchanging environment. The investigation examined Indigenous views of change and risk, as well as the broader socioeconomic and political circumstances that impact on their underlying vulnerabilities and capacities to adapt.
Children’s understanding of weather and seasons in Broome – A qualitative investigation of children’s perceptions to provide a more holistic understanding of how changes in weather and climate affect the younger members of the community.
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ABSTRACT While the disruption to international air travel caused by the eruption of Iceland&#39;s Eyjafjallajökull volcano in 2010 has been well documented, the significant social impacts on local residents from ash fall to the south... more
ABSTRACT While the disruption to international air travel caused by the eruption of Iceland&#39;s Eyjafjallajökull volcano in 2010 has been well documented, the significant social impacts on local residents from ash fall to the south and east of the crater are less well-known. These impacts and attitudes of impacted residents and emergency managers are the foci of our present study. Prior to and during the eruption, officials worked to protect the local population from the glacial outburst floods (jökulhlaup) that were of primary concern. The success of these endeavours can in part be attributed to a regional evacuation exercise held in March 2006, an exercise that was carried out with respect to a possible eruption at another volcano, Katla, that is located 25 km to the east of Eyjafjallajökull. Eruptions at either volcano will impact the same communities. Our study here concentrates on Álftaver, a small farming community, located approximately 60 km east-southeast of Eyjafjallajökull and 30 km southeast of Katla. Álftaver has been the subject of longitudinal studies carried out in 2004, 2006, and 2008; these studies highlighted the difficulties that emergency managers face in developing appropriate response strategies acceptable to vulnerable communities. The 2010 Eyjafjallajökull eruptions presented an opportunity to re-assess residents&#39; attitudes and behaviour in relation to volcanic risk management in the wake of their first-hand experiences with volcanic hazards. To achieve this, interviews were conducted with residents and emergency management officials and a questionnaire was distributed to residents. This paper presents the results of this survey and examines changes in attitudes towards volcanic risk management. It was apparent that the experience of ash fall from Eyjafjallajökull provided a better perspective of what could be expected from a Katla eruption and that attitudes towards emergency management had evolved accordingly. Importantly, officials&#39; perceptions of risk are now more aligned with those of residents and both recognise the need for more detailed and concise information regarding the impacts of ash fall during and following volcanic eruptions.
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Volcanic risk mitigation strategies were revised for residents living in the eastern jökulhlaup hazard zone of Mýrdalsjökull, southern Iceland. These plans were trialled during a full-scale evacuation exercise on 25 March 2006. In order... more
Volcanic risk mitigation strategies were revised for residents living in the eastern jökulhlaup hazard zone of Mýrdalsjökull, southern Iceland. These plans were trialled during a full-scale evacuation exercise on 25 March 2006. In order to assess residents' perception of and response to the exercise and proposed mitigation strategies a mixed methods survey was applied. This investigation consisted of field observations
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This research investigates residents’ knowledge and perception of the Katla volcano and emergency response procedures in all rural and urban communities located in the eastern and southern Katla hazard zones. Using a questionnaire survey... more
This research investigates residents’ knowledge and perception of the Katla volcano and emergency response procedures in all rural and urban communities located in the eastern and southern Katla hazard zones. Using a questionnaire survey conducted in 2008, we demonstrate that there is an apparent difference between rural and urban communities' knowledge and perceptions, and identify some of the issues influencing residents’ perspectives and behaviour. All rural and most urban residents have an accurate knowledge of Katla, the proposed warning system and emergency response plan. Urban residents perceived the emergency response plan to be appropriate. In comparison, rural residents did not perceive the emergency response plan as appropriate. Rural residents stated that they would personally assess the situation before deciding on a course of action independent of the proposed plan. Livelihood connections and inherited knowledge affect rural residents’ ability and willingness to co...
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Migration out of hazard-prone areas presents significant opportunities for disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation. Alongside and intermingled with opportunistic migration there has always been relocation to escape,... more
Migration out of hazard-prone areas presents significant opportunities for disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation. Alongside and intermingled with opportunistic migration there has always been relocation to escape, particularly from calamity, disaster and warfare. As climate change is considered a likely driver of migration, the literature encompasses a debate as to whether or not migration can be considered to be adaptation. This paper investigates the concept of voluntary within-country migration as an adaptation strategy to reduce disaster risk in Australia. We refer to this internal migration as relocation. The paper examines results of research carried out in Australia at the time of recent and extensive disasters, where opportunities were presented to examine household attitudes towards relocation in the face of future disasters of similar extent. Individuals’ attitudes towards relocation were ascertained within an adaptation and mitigation context, at a time of...
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This book discusses a new and broadening field which links demography and disaster studies. Traditionally people have viewed disasters as shocks to everyday routines, the result of an unanticipated natural hazard event or as engineering... more
This book discusses a new and broadening field which links demography and disaster studies. Traditionally people have viewed disasters as shocks to everyday routines, the result of an unanticipated natural hazard event or as engineering failures and therefore the domain of technological rather than social sciences. Under these paradigms, the links between disasters and demography seems relatively simplistic and unidirectional, with the focus on estimating post-disaster populations, measuring mortality or understanding out-migration impacts. Nevertheless, disasters have the capacity to fundamentally alter population profiles at local and regional levels. Impacts vary according to the type, rapidity and magnitude of the disaster, but also according to the pre-existing population profile and its relationships to the economy and society. In all cases, the key to understanding impacts and avoiding them in the future is to understand the relationships between disasters and population change, both prior to and after a disaster. The aim of this book (ISBN 978-3-030-49920-4) is to provide a comprehensive discussion on the demography of vulnerability and resilience in the face of disasters, the demography of risk from disaster impacts for vulnerable groups. Demographic methods can help in post-disaster population estimation and in managing and mapping people. In many cases human migration is a common response to disaster and hence there is a link to spatial population dynamics as well. The demography of policy and practice around disaster mitigation is also an important part of the present volume along with profiling future risks and opportunities. The demography of climate change highlights the disaster-demography link in a specific way. In line with the multifarious nature of the disaster-demography nexus our book takes an interdisciplinary approach, with chapters ranging from geography to gendered understanding of disaster resilience.