Emerging Minds recognised for project that supports children

A suite of freely available resources designed to support children and adults before, during and after disasters or traumatic events has been recognised as part of the 20th anniversary of the Resilient Australia Awards. 

The Community Trauma Toolkit, a collaborative project between Emerging Minds, Australian National University and the University of Queensland, recognises the drastic impact of events such as bushfires, floods, droughts and cyclones on infant and child mental health, providing resources to support before, during and after such events. 

Speaking about the value of the kit, a spokesperson for Emerging Minds said it “fills several gaps in the existing disaster preparedness, emergency management and post-emergency coordination. With over 175 million children all over the world affected by disasters each year,this work is so critical.”

Emerging Minds joined a high calibre group of recipients yesterday, with other winners including a student-led success story arising from the catastrophic impact of the Black Saturday fires, a Scouts badge program teaching young people valuable real-world skills used within the State Emergency Services, a compelling portrait of a bushfire victim, and a collaborative government and school disaster resilience project. 

The Resilient Australia Awards selected both the Emerging Minds project and one other, dealing with addressing the increased domestic and family violence known to occur after emergencies and disasters as being “of exceptional national significance”, with both receiving special recognition outside of the awards categories.  

Executive Director of the Australian Institute for Disaster Resilience, Amanda Leck, said the quality of entries into this year’s awards was impressive, with a record number of nominations received in most categories. 

“Each of the winners and finalist projects demonstrate just how effective collaborative efforts can be with increasing community safety and resilience. We hope these projects inspire others to work together to help build greater disaster resilience in their communities” she added. 

To access a full list of Award winners, or to learn more about the Awards, please see here. 

The Emerging Minds Community Trauma Toolkit may be accessed here.