Beyond Bushfires
You can download the single pages version of the report here.
Webinars
The 10 years Beyond Bushfires report was launched as part of the AIDR Recovery Matters Webinar Series on Tuesday 30th of March 2021. Key learnings of the study and recommendations for communities, schools, government, and service providers were presented.
The AIDR Recovery Matters Webinar series has also featured the 10 Years Beyond Bushfires report in subsequent webinars:
Post-traumatic growth: Exploring the 10 Years Beyond Bushfires Report
Mental health recovery after disaster: Exploring the 10 Years Beyond Bushfires Report
Social Networks and Disaster Resilience: Exploring the 10 Years Beyond Bushfires Report
10 Years Beyond Bushfires is a continuation of the Beyond Bushfires research which provides insight into how people are managing 10 years on from the 2009 bushfires and build an understanding of the long term experiences of those affected by disasters. What we have found from the original Beyond Bushfires study has been incredibly important. The findings are being used to improve emergency recovery planning and services across Australia and internationally, and they have even been shared by the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction. We know that 10 years on from the 2009 fires, the impacts continue to be felt by many. However, these long-term experiences are not as well-understood or as well-researched as short-term recovery. In response to this gap in knowledge, the State Government, Emergency Management Victoria and Australian Red Cross have provided funding for the 10 Years Beyond Bushfires study. The study involved another round of surveys in 2019. We contacted the same people who participated last time, so that we traced people's experiences over time. This research captured a range of different experiences. For this reason, the study includes residents from communities that were selected for diversity on a range of factors including level of bushfire impact, demographics, community size and location. It was the inclusion of people with many different experiences that made the Beyond Bushfires research findings so strong and influential.
If you would like to learn more about this research, please contact info-beyondbushfires@unimelb.edu.au or Lisa Gibbs (lgibbs@unimelb.edu.au).
You can also follow us on Facebook and Twitter.
Communities included in the study
- Axedale
- Callignee
- Dixons Creek
- Darnum
- Eildon
- Kinglake, Kinglake Central, Pheasant Creek & Kinglake West
- Koornalla
- Marysville, Narbethong, Granton, Buxton & Taggerty
- Mudgegonga (& surrounding communities)
- Steels Creek
- Tallarook
- West Bendigo
Beyond Bushfires findings
A brief summary of the original Beyond Bushfires findings is available here and an overview report published in 2016 is available here.
A full list of publications associated with Beyond Bushfires and our broader Beyond Disasters program of research is available here.
Recovery Capitals (ReCap)
The Beyond Bushfires findings also feature in the Guide to Disaster Recovery Capitals from the Recovery Capitals (ReCap) project.
Prof Lisa Gibbs discusses both projects in this video.
10 Years Beyond Bushfires Research Team
The study has brought together a multidisciplinary team of leading international researchers with expertise in mental health, trauma, recovery, social networks, community and family health, child research, policy, and emergency services.
- Professor Lisa Gibbs
Child and Community Wellbeing Unit & Centre for Disaster Management and Public Safety,
University of Melbourne
- Professor Louise Harms
Department of Social Work,
University of Melbourne
- Dr Karen Block
Child and Community Wellbeing Unit
University of Melbourne
- Professor Richard Bryant
School of Psychology,
University of NSW
- David Forbes
Phoenix Australia: Centre for Posttraumatic Mental Health
Department of Psychiatry, University of Melbourne
- Greg Ireton
Child and Community Wellbeing Unit
University of Melbourne
- John Richardson
National Resilience Adviser
Australian Red Cross
- Professor Colin MacDougall
Southgate Institute for Health, Equity and Society,
Flinders University
- Dr Colin Gallagher
Child and Community Wellbeing Unit
University of Melbourne
- Meaghan O'Donnell
Phoenix Australia: Centre for Posttraumatic Mental Health
Department of Psychiatry, University of Melbourne
- Robyn Molyneaux
Child and Community Wellbeing Unit
University of Melbourne
- Phoebe Quinn
Child and Community Wellbeing Unit
University of Melbourne
- Alana Pirrone
Child and Community Wellbeing Unit
University of Melbourne
- Hannah Morrice
Child and Community Wellbeing Unit
University of Melbourne
- Connie Kellett
Department of Social Work, University of Melbourne
Department of Justice and Community Safety
Partners



We gratefully acknowledge our funding partners: Emergency Management Victoria, Australian Red Cross and Victorian Department of Health and Human Services
Other partner organisations include Phoenix Australia Centre for Posttraumatic Mental Health, Municipal Association Victoria, Social Recovery Reference Group, and the Social Research Centre.