Iain S Mackenzie, Inspector General Emergency Management is set to provide an address at the LGAQ Disaster Management Conference in Mackay, from 9-11 May.
We sat down with him to discuss game changing disaster management technologies, the importance of collaboration and his key priorities in the April-May edition of Council Leader magazine.
1. What are the biggest challenges for councils as they continue to act as local leaders on the frontline of disaster management planning, preparedness, response and recovery to increase mitigation, capability and the resilience of Queensland?
Perhaps the greatest challenge is trying to balance the fact that while Councils are clearly the local leaders, their success depends on the actions of so many other players.
While building these supportive relationships is crucial, having robust systems in place to enable them is a vital element. Clearly the capability and capacity of councils does vary across the state, recognizing when these become constraints, having open conversations around limitations and building ways to overcome them through a robust planning approach will place councils in good stead for the future.
2. Real-time information sharing platforms like social media and mobile apps have enhanced the ability of councils and Local Disaster Management Groups to share timely and accurate information to the community during a disaster. From an operational perspective, what does this mean for councils?
I think there are two aspects to this, the first is that community expectations are changing, community members use and rely upon modern technology in many aspects of their life and therefore expect that we will also use this technology to keep them informed, educated and if necessary warned.
The second is the ability for us to share vital pieces of information to enable and improve our approach to working together. From time to time we will all hold a critical piece of the puzzle. Knowing when, why, with whom and how to share it, I think still evades us.
Some councils have done remarkable work in this regard, as have some state agencies and indeed private parties. However, the challenge remains on how this exchange can be achieved in a timely, accurate, transparent and most importantly, a meaningful manner.
I do not profess to be particularly technically minded, however I do believe a model that enables data to be published (perhaps into a secure area) and then consumed and manipulated by entities for their own needs could be developed and would present considerable benefit.
3. How would you say the changing face of our Queensland communities is impacting the way in which local councils holistically look at disaster management?
This is a difficult question and I am not sure if I am comfortable trying to answer this one. Having visited many communities across the State I never cease to be amazed by the diversity of the landscape, the people, the economy, culture and even generational aspects of communities.
I don't think there is any organisation better placed to recognise how these things are changing (often very slowly) than council.
I think then it is largely up to council and, through the LDMG, to recognize the nuances of their community and develop an approach that fits their needs. Holistically there are certainly emerging challenges that may impact communities and that councils and LDMGs should be aware of.
These may include issues such as the potential for an increase in cyber-attacks, this could render warning and communications useless or worse feed false information to the public.
4. Let’s talk collaboration! How important is a collaborative approach to disaster management across all levels of government, NGOs and the private sector – particularly in a state like Queensland?
In short, I don't think there is anything more important. We have defined collaboration within our stakeholder engagement framework as “Two-way or multi-way engagement: joint decision making and actions.”
More importantly, I think this is the last step in a model that leads to empowerment allowing for and respecting delegated decision making. This is a concept that we often seek for our own organisations, the challenge facing us in the future may be for us to accept this as a valid means of engaging with the community.
5. As Inspector General, what are your key priorities for the immediate future in emergency management across the state?
My key priority is to strive to be a valued critical friend of the sector, to work collaboratively on a ‘no-surprise’ basis to find ways to improve upon what is already a good system.
My vision has been to be the catalyst for excellence, to achieve this we want to stay across current and emerging issues that may affect the effectiveness and efficiency of disaster management across the full PPRR spectrum.
I see the need to continually scan for, predict and influence emerging disruptive technology and businesses so the sector can be better informed about both the opportunities and the vulnerabilities these expose.
These could include, virtual and augmented reality, the use of UAVs, wearable technologies, three dimensional printing, autonomous vehicles, the rise of systems that match needs of people with solutions such as air-tasker and air bnb.
Councils can register for the 2017 Local Government Disaster Management Conference here. The Mackay event will bring together leading local and national strategic thinkers planners and practitioners, as well as draw on key state partners from government agencies, NGOs and the private sector.