Our Simtables for Community Empowerment project, funded by BCRRF, came to a close on the first of June 2023.

This project set out to provide two Simtables as novel tools for engaging communities about natural disasters (particularly bushfires), in order to improve their level of understanding and preparedness. To achieve this, we aimed to deliver community workshops and training sessions with council staff and emergency management organisations across the region. This enabled us to build long term capacity within partner organisations to utilise the Simtables on an ongoing basis beyond the initial project life.

We initially committed to delivering three user training sessions or demonstrations and 24 community workshops. We are very pleased to announce that we have well and truly exceeded those targets, delivering 23 user training sessions and demonstrations, 47 workshops and community events, and five Simtable loans.

To support the use of the Simtable into the future, the project has also delivered supporting resources including a user guide, and educational and promotional materials. Watch our Simtables video featuring our very own Senior Projects Coordinator, Chris Dart.

A particular program highlight has been to support MidCoast Council to use the Simtables as part of their Bushfire Preparedness Workshop series (watch here). These workshops have been held in fire affected communities across the MidCoast LGA.

The Simtables project will continue to be extended with funding under the Disaster Risk Reduction Fund (DRRF).