Creative Responders

Creative Responders

By Creative Recovery NetworkSociety & CultureHealth & FitnessMental HealthArts
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Creative Responders episodes

  • In Conversation with Caroline Alcorso
    Doctor Caroline Alcorso is currently directing the Natural Disaster Mental Health and Wellbeing Framework for the National Mental Health Commission.
    She has an extensive background in social policy, programs and research in both community sector organisations and government. Along with her substantial academic background, Caroline is a leader and innovator in a range of social policy areas, including health, gender equity, workforce development, workplace relations and multicultural affairs.
    The Natural Disaster Mental Health and Wellbeing Framework is funded by the Australian Government in a bid to address the increasingly complex mental health needs of individuals and communities affected by natural disasters.
    The Framework, which will be released in June 2021, aims to improve cross-government responses to mental health threats before, during and after natural disasters.
    In this episode, Scotia and Caroline discuss:
    • How the Natural Disaster Mental Health and Wellbeing Framework came about and what the approach has been so far for engaging individuals and organisations in the research process

    • The importance of supporting continuity in community recovery efforts in order to develop skills, personnel and ongoing knowledge-building at a local level to better respond to natural disasters over time

    • Challenges identified around the help-seeking process and the importance of addressing the mental health impacts of the aftermath of disaster

    • How the response to our new reality of cascading impacts is being approached at a national level and how it incorporates the presence of non-traditional modes of response

    • The importance of co-collaboration and how local funding programs are being successfully utilised to build community capital to help communities rebuild

    References and further reading:
    National Disaster Mental Health and Wellbeing Framework Factsheet
    ‘Brain research shows the arts promote mental health’, The Conversation
    National Arts and Health Framework
    Red Cross Australia, Looking After Yourself and Your Family After a Disaster
    Phoenix Australia, Disaster Mental Health Hub

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    29 min
  • Working Sustainably in Community Practice
    Arts workers in remote or trauma-impacted communities are often sent in to complex environments with little preparation or adequate peer support for the situations they will encounter.
    In this episode, we head to one of the most remote areas of Australia - Warburton community, Western Australia on Ngaanyatjarra Lands, where Silvano Giordano shares his experience as co-Director of Wilurarra Creative - a community hub and arts studio dedicated to creative programs for young Ngaanyatjarra people.
    Silvano shares some of the systems of self-care and sustainable practice he has developed over time, and his co-Director, BJ, joins us to talk about the ways his community approaches working relationships between Ngaanyatjarra and non-Ngaanyatjarra people.
    We also hear about Silvano’s participation in a professional supervision pilot project - a collaboration between Creative Recovery Network and Community Arts Network (CAN), designed to draw on the experience and wisdom of leading community arts and cultural development workers to grow a deeper understanding of the support needs for community-based practitioners across Australia.
    June Moorhouse, co-CEO of CAN joins us to talk about the pilot project’s findings and how she believes the arts sector is at an exciting turning point for driving change towards new standards of practice and a framework to better support practitioners in high performance work environments.
    Silvano Giordano, Wilurarra Creative, Co-DirectorBJ, Wilurarra Creative, Co-DirectorJune Moorhouse, CEO, Community Arts NetworkShona Erskine, Psychologist and Consultant
    This episode features music by Travis West, 'Boy Crying for Family', from the album Wilurarra Desert Reggae: A Compilation of New Ngaanyatjarra Music recorded at Wilurarra Creative studio in 2017.

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    46 min
  • Storytelling in a changing climate: Indigenous art and tourism on the Great Barrier Reef
    The climate crisis is one of the greatest disasters we may ever witness. In the face of such enormous challenges, what is the place for creativity and storytelling?
    In this episode, guest producer Nicole Hutton takes us to the Great Barrier Reef to hear how reef coast Traditional Owners are using tourism, art and storytelling as a proactive tool to open conversations around climate change.
    Nicole takes us out on the reef with Indigenous tour operator, Dreamtime Dive & Snorkel, to speak with Dustin Maloney about sharing stories from the reef and how Traditional Owners being in control of tourism happening on their own country is a critical step towards climate justice for people on the frontlines of climate change.
    She visits the Hope Vale Arts and Cultural Centre where artist and Dingaal clan Elder, Gertrude Deeral, shares some of the ways elders in the Hope Vale community have utilised art and storytelling as a way of passing down complex layers of knowledge about their country, ecosystem and culture.
    We also look at some of the tensions between tourism and conservation and hear from Jiritju Fourmile, a Yindiji man from Gimuy, Cairns, about coral bleaching, the cultural significance of the reef and the importance of storytelling and tourism in generating a wider understanding of the need for its protection.
    Interviewees:Dustin Maloney, Dreamtime Dive & SnorkelGertrude Deeral, Artist, Elder from the Dingaal clan and Traditional Owner of the country around Lizard IslandJiritju Fourmile, Traditional Owner and climate activist

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    38 min
  • Community-led Recovery in a Time of Cascading Disasters
    The Blacksmiths’ Tree is a stunning nine-metre steel and copper gum tree which stands in the small town of Strathewen, Victoria, as a memorial to the people and communities impacted by Black Saturday and the 2009 Victorian bushfires.
    The project began with designer and metal artist, Amanda Grant, who coordinated a local and international team of blacksmiths and volunteers to create what has become an enduring symbol of hope, resilience and connectedness.
    In this episode, Amanda joins us to look at the different roles of artist and facilitator, and what these roles mean in a disaster recovery context. What role can the arts play in community-led recovery? What does a community-led project look like, and how can artists facilitate authentic community engagement in their work?
    We also head to Central and Western Gippsland, where three shire councils are collaborating with Creative Recovery Network to support local artists to develop community-led bushfire recovery projects, with Amanda as lead mentor.
    We speak to Latrobe City Council’s Robyn Duffy and Linda Snell about the important role of local government in community recovery and we also hear from Gulsen Ozer, one of the artists on the project. Gulsen shares her insights on the current challenges of cascading disasters and the creative solution found by the project team when their community consultation process was interrupted by Victoria’s Covid19 lockdown.
    Interviewees:
    • Amanda Grant, Lead Mentor, Creative Recovery Network / Project Lead on The Blacksmiths’ Tree
    • Robyn Duffy, Municipal Recovery Manager, Latrobe City Council
    • Linda Snell, Yinnar South Recovery Officer, Latrobe City Council
    • Gulsen Ozer, Artist

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    46 min
  • Growing new possibilities in the Snowy Valleys
    Just down the road from the charred silence of the iconic Sugar Pines Plantation in the Snowy Valleys, is the Pilot Hill Arboretum, in the foothills of the Snowy Mountains of New South Wales.
    On 28 December 2020, exactly one year after the Dunns Road Fire wrought havoc for 50 days, the Arbour Festival will begin its own 50 day journey, transforming the Arboretum with artworks, installations and events designed to nurture and celebrate the region.
    In this episode, we’ll take you inside the Arbour Festival to explore the role event-based arts initiatives play in the wake of disaster and how the arts can be a powerful conduit for authentic community engagement in the ritual of recovery.
    We visit the Arboretum with author, Sulari Gentill, to hear how she and a group of local writers are creating a forest of talking trees - and how the Festival has become a vehicle for a community-focused program that is inclusive of the strong local arts community.
    Festival Curator Vanessa Keenan and Eastern Riverina Arts’ Executive Director Tim Kurylowicz talk us through the process of developing Arbour - how they’ve deftly balanced the competing needs of a diverse range of stakeholders; why it’s essential to centre the local community as the first priority; and how the shared focus of an arts festival provides myriad ways to reactivate place-based relationships and bring people together to make meaning of their experience.
    Interviewees:
    • Sulari Gentill, Arbour Festival artist and author
    • Vanessa Keenan, Arbour Festival Curator / Managing Director, Acorn Creative Group
    • Tim Kurylowicz, Executive Director, Eastern Riverina Arts
    • Charlie Taylor, Operations Manager, Forestry Corp and Deputy Incident Controller, Dunns Road Fire

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    39 min
  • In Conversation with Vivien Davidson
    What happens when your community goes through a devastating experience and you feel compelled to reach out to those most in need? Like many who witnessed the impact of the Australian bushfires last Summer, Vivien Davidson wanted to find a way to express her solidarity and connect with people in her community who were hardest hit by the Currowan fire on the South Coast of New South Wales.
    In this very special episode, we hear how Vivien and her friends at the Murramarang Spinners and Weavers group harnessed the goodwill and creativity of their community in a meaningful act of kindness and connection.
    We also hear about Vivien’s upcoming plans for the one year anniversary of the fire and how art can provide a powerful foundation for sharing and connection as people rebuild their lives after a disaster.
    In this conversation, Scotia and Vivien discuss:
    - The process of creating 50 ‘Love Boxes’ for bushfire affected residents in the New South Wales district of Milton-Ulladulla made up of hand-knitted beanies, hand-made soaps, coffee vouchers for local brewers, seed packets, individually hand-dyed silk scarves and personal notes of support and solidarity.- How the group mobilised a team of home knitters who made 75 beanies, working throughout the Covid lockdown and the impact the process had on those who contributed.- Vivien’s plans for a community recovery exhibition to mark the one year anniversary of the fire.- The importance of the arts to community recovery and how creativity can provide a meaningful way to share and connect.- And finally, Vivien shares with us some of the heartfelt feedback the group received from the recipients of the Love Boxes.
    Further information:
    Creative Recovery Love Boxeshttps://creativerecovery.net.au/key-projects/love-boxes/

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    43 min
  • In Conversation with John Richardson
    As National Resilience Adviser for Red Cross Australia, John Richardson is someone who spends a lot of time thinking about disasters - how we make sense of them, how we can better prepare for them, and how they transform the individuals and communities who go through them.
    We spoke to John during Red Cross Australia’s annual Emergency Preparedness Week to hear his perspective on the unchartered waters of 2020 and what lessons we can learn about resilience, response and recovery from the unique set of challenges we are facing.
    John discusses how a strong emphasis on social connectedness is key to building more resilient communities and we reflect on how creatives can support the work of service organisations developing rigour around preparedness and recovery.
    In this conversation, John and Scotia discuss:
    • John’s career path which began with a foundation in geography and nursing leading on to emergency management where he has been involved in coordinating recovery support for a range of major and minor disasters, including the Bali Bombings, Drought, Alpine Bushfires in 2003 and 2006 and Grampians Fires in 2006

    • John’s involvement in developing the Strathewen Memorial following the Black Saturday bushfires of 2009, the importance of a rigorous community-led process in memorial making and how creativity and the arts is an integral part of that process

    • The value of the arts in helping people to make sense of traumatic events and the importance of making meaning after a disasters.

    • The importance of strong social ties in managing stress and how the Red Cross 2020 survey shows that seven in 10 Australians credit strong connections with friends and family as the most important factor in helping them manage during what has been a year of extremes with the summer fires and now the pandemic

    Further reading and resources:
    John’s blog, Sastrugi:https://sastrugi.me
    Big Stories, Small Towns, Strathewen Memorial transmedia documentary project:http://www.bigstories.com.au/towns/strathewen
    Red Cross, Emergency Preparedness Week Resources:
    Red Cross has a range of resources to help you prepare, including a Get Prepared app, survival kit, emergency contacts list, keepsake list, resources to help manage stress and more. Find them at redcross.org.au/prepare.
    Download the Get Prepared app to locate your local emergency services contacts and where to find information, identify a safe meeting place for you and loved ones and create checklists of what to do and what to pack. It’s available on iOS, Android and redcross.org.au/prepare.
    Create an emergency plan for your household to protect what matters most with a Rediplan, available at redcross.org.au/prepare
    Visit redcross.org.au/prepare for advice on how to prepare yourself and your family.

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    44 min
  • In Conversation with Alex Kelly
    Alex Kelly is an art maker, organiser, activist and filmmaker whose work is anchored by a deep commitment to social and climate justice.She joins Scotia to discuss her most recent project, Assembly for the Future, a series of digital gatherings in which participants collectively imagine better worlds and new pathways, preparing for a resilient and community visioned future.
    We also hear about Alex’s work as part of the filmmaking team for In My Blood It Runs, the critically acclaimed documentary told through the eyes of 10-year-old Arrernte/Garrwa boy, Dujuan and his family, and the power of storytelling as a catalyst for change.
    In this conversation, Alex and Scotia discuss:
    • The importance of developing a robust space for imaginative dialogue around possible futures that allows for nuanced thinking to service the creation of better futures

    • Why we need to move away from the traditional binary of hope and fear in order to hold complex truths and narratives around futuring and world-building

    • The concept of disaster capitalism, how it is currently playing out within the crisis of the global pandemic and Alex’s work with author Naomi Klein around her book, This Changes Everything, Capitalism vs. the Climate

    • How moments of disaster or upheaval provide an opportunity for people to push forward in ways that were not previously possible, and how we can harness creative thinking for more progressive outcomes

    • The power of storytelling as a catalyst for change, the collaborative process of developing In My Blood It Runs and how the film provides a deeply intimate insight into both the challenges and joys faced by its 10 year-old protagonist

    • The importance of community connection and small-scale organising to build social capital and more resilient communities

    Further reading and resources:
    Assembly for the FutureThe Things We Did NextAlex KellyIn My Blood it RunsThis Changes Everything by Naomi Klein

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    50 min
  • In Conversation with Kate Sulan
    Kate Sulan is a performance maker, director, dramaturge and facilitator. Along with her role as founding Artistic Director of Melbourne’s Rawcus theatre company, Kate is also one of the artists working on the five year Refuge project at Arts House which brings together emergency management, artists, the community and local, regional and international partners.
    Kate’s cubby house installation developed as part of the Refuge project is a powerful example of how the intersection of the arts, emergency management and the creativity of young people can provide emotional support, a sense of safety and moments of delight during challenging times.
    In this conversation, Kate and Scotia discuss:
    The collective wisdom that comes from a community-led artistic practice and the importance of establishing a value-system that is inclusive and flexible enough to meet multiple needs and approaches;
    How artists’ comfort with the unknown, and their capacity to be fluid, flexible and responsive is a real asset when collaborating and working within the emergency management sector;
    The energy that working with young people has brought to Kate’s work and the idea that children and young people are a resource with valuable offerings into the emergency management space rather than something to be ‘managed’;
    How the arts can support emotional preparedness through the example of Kate’s work with St Joseph’s Flexible Learning Centre and their development of an ‘emotional grab-and-go bag’, to provide emotional support and a sense of safety for young people through challenging times.
    Kate’s ongoing collaboration with the Red Cross through their RediPlan workshops, the deep trust and communication required to build partnerships between the arts and other sectors, and how artist’s can best provide complimentary support within a protocol-heavy system when resources are stretched.
    You can listen via the player on this page or search for ‘Creative Responders’ in Apple podcasts, Spotify or your favourite podcast app.
    Further reading and resources:
    Refuge, Arts Househttps://www.artshouse.com.au/ourprograms/refuge/
    In Case Of…RediPlan Workshop, Red Cross and Kate Sulan, (presented by Arts House as part of Refuge 2019: Displacement)https://www.artshouse.com.au/events/in-case-of-rediplan-workshop/
    Rawcus Theatre Companyhttps://rawcus.org.au
    Red Cross Australia, RediPlan and other disaster preparedness resourceshttps://www.redcross.org.au/get-help/emergencies/resources-about-disasters
    Poetry by Pauli Murrayhttps://paulimurrayproject.org/pauli-murray/poetry-by-pauli-murray/

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    47 min
  • In Conversation with Amanda Lamont

    What would it look like like if different phases of emergency management were approached as an interconnected whole? What is missing from Australia’s royal commission into the response to the recent bushfire season? How do we recognise and celebrate the contribution of women in emergencies and ensure more diversity in representation when it comes to decision-making?


    Amanda is a specialist in stakeholder engagement, partnerships and relationship management, with a focus on disaster resilience and disaster risk reduction. Her experiences spanning the corporate, government, legal, humanitarian, not-for-profit, research and community sectors in Australia, the UK and the US have positioned Amanda as one of the leading thinkers and change-makers in crisis preparedness.


    Whether in her capacity as a volunteer firefighter, a lawyer, an international aid worker or co-founder of the Australasian Women in Emergencies Network, the constant thread through Amanda’s career is her deep passion for social justice and her immense capacity for leadership to make improvements to people’s lives.


    Scotia and Amanda discuss:

    • The overlap of phases in the disaster management cycle and how previous notions in the traditional ‘preparedness, response, recovery’ framework no longer apply as each phase is so complex and interconnected.
    • The “cascade of disasters” facing many communities dealing with compounded effects of drought, bushfire recovery and preparedness and now Covid-19, and the learning experience provided by this intersection of multiple disasters.
    • The lack of emphasis on preparedness and mitigation in Australia’s Royal Commission into National Natural Disaster Arrangements and why this gap is significant to our future planning.
    • How the arts can alleviate suffering, bring people together and play a key role in memorialising traumatic events for a community.
    • How we measure “impact” - looking beyond the metrics of property numbers to allow for the complexity of broad, far-reaching impacts a disaster can have on a community.
    • The notion of “community-led recovery”, what does it mean and how do we achieve it?
    • The impetus behind forming the Australasian Women in Emergencies Network, the importance of diversity in representation and the current gender gap in positions of senior leadership in the emergency management sector.


    References and further reading:

    Australasian Women in Emergencies Network

    The Blacksmiths’ Tree: https://www.treeproject.abavic.org.au/index.html

    Royal Commission into National Natural Disaster Arrangements: https://naturaldisaster.royalcommission.gov.au

    Bushfires in Australia - Promoting Resilience Down Under, MYD Global interview with Amanda Lamont: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MIxllRl402c

    AFAC TV Interview with Amanda Lamont: https://www.facebook.com/AFACnews/videos/509672163123345/

    Promoting Disaster Resilience in the Land Down Under, MYD Global interview with Amanda Lamont: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXwdV8bgd1U


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    49 min

About Creative Responders

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Creative Responders is a podcast from the Creative Recovery Network that explores the unique power of the arts and creativity in disaster management by sharing stories and insights from artists,…