Choose to Challenge

All hazards

Risks spanning across multiple hazard types and across the emergency management system.

Biosecurity

Exotic animal and plant disease outbreaks and pest incursions can have significant economic, community and environmental impacts.

Bushfire and other fires

Bushfire and other fires have potential consequences including loss of life and property, and damage to infrastructure and environment.

Climate change

Risks include more days of extreme heat, harsher fire weather, less rainfall and rising sea levels.

Communications disruption

Communications services are crucial in keeping communities safe, connected and informed before, during and after emergencies.

Cyber security and ICT systems failure

Risks relating to the confidentiality, availability, integrity of information and data and disruption of services.

Energy supply disruption

Reliable energy supplies are critical to many social and economic activities.

Flood

Major flood events have occurred in Victoria every 10 to 20 years, with much of the increasing risk created by human settlement.

Hazardous material incident

Potential risks relate to many places where Victoria’s hazardous materials are manufactured, stored, transported, used and disposed.

Heatwave

Heatwaves are considered to be the ‘silent killer’ of extreme weather events and are the leading cause of weather-related deaths in Australia.

Public health emergency

Risks may relate to the delivery of public health services, with impacts on community health and wellbeing and potential for loss of life.

Supply chain disruption

Geopolitical, environmental, economic, societal and infrastructure-related shocks can expose supply chains to wide ranging consequences.

Terrorism and extremism

Attacks carried out by individuals or non-state groups with ideological, political or religious goals can result in loss of life, severe injury and/or material damage.

Water supply disruption

Risks include collection, storage, treatment, delivery, availability and allocation of water for consumption and environmental, recreation and cultural uses.

Workforce and resourcing

Risks may relate to human resource supply and skills to support emergency management operations.

International Women's Day (IWD) is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. The day also marks a call to action for accelerating gender parity.

Marked annually on 8 March, International Women's Day is one of the most important days of the year to:

celebrate women's achievements
raise awareness about women's equality
lobby for accelerated gender parity
fundraise for female-focused charities

2021 #ChooseToChallenge

The 2021 IWD campaign theme is #ChooseToChallenge because a challenged world is an alert world. Individually, we’re all responsible for our own thoughts and actions – all day, every day.

We can choose to challenge and call out gender bias and inequity. We can choose to seek out and celebrate women’s achievements. Collectively, we can all help create an inclusive world.

From challenge comes change, so let’s all choose to challenge.

Celebrating women in emergency management

Building on the success of Emergency Services Foundation (External link) inaugural IWD event in 2020 women across the emergency management sector will celebrate the 2021 International Women’s Day theme Choose to Challenge, at events in Wangaratta and Melbourne.

In hosting events for IWD 2021 ESF will specifically respond to two recommendations on a study of women in the Victorian emergency management sector to:

bring women across the sector together to create events/forums that increase camaraderie, support, and acknowledgement
to explore how regionalised thankyou events could be generated for emergency service employees and volunteers

If you've a role in emergency management and would like to attend:

Wangaratta 14 March

https://esf-iwdchoosetochallenge-wangaratta.eventbrite.com.au (External link)

Melbourne 16 March

https://esf-iwdchoosetochallenge-melbourne.eventbrite.com.au (External link)

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2021 #ChooseToChallenge

Celebrating women in emergency management

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