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Thriving Kids in Disasters (TKiD) Project Library
This Project Library collates links to 70+ resources to support you and your organisations when working with infants, children, young people, families, and communities in the context of disasters.
If you know of additional resources you’d like to recommend for inclusion in the Project Library, please get in touch with the TKiD project team: TQKP@aracy.org.au
Advocacy
UNICEF Australia (website)
Royal Commission into National Natural Disaster Arrangements Report. Royal Commission into National Natural Disaster Arrangements. (2020)
Riding the wave: An exploration of principals’ experiences leading their schools through and beyond critical incidents[Thesis]. Myors, B. E. (2013). Australian Catholic University
Advancing disability inclusion in local disaster risk reduction: Analysis and Recommendations from the Pilot Implementation of the Disaster Resilience Scorecard for Cities—Annex for the Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities. United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction. (2024)
The Convention on the Rights of the Child: The children’s version. UNICEF
Climate Change
Early Childhood Scientific Council on Equity and the Environment. (2023). Extreme heat affects early childhood development and health
University of Melbourne. (2019, February 6). Black Saturday: Understanding disaster recovery and resilience
Short fuse links bushfires with domestic violence
Disaster Management
Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030. United Nations Office for Disaster Risk and Reduction [UNDRR]. 2015
Queensland Strategy for Disaster Resilience 2022-2027. Queensland Reconstruction Authority. 2022
2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs. 2024
Australian Government Crisis Management Framework. Commonwealth of Australia (Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet), 2023
Australian Emergency Management Arrangements. Australian Institute for Disaster Resilience [AIDR], 2023
Australian Disaster Recovery Framework (v. 3). National Emergency Management Agency [NEMA], 2022
Disaster Management Act 2003. State of Queensland, 2024
Disaster Management Regulation. State of Queensland, 2014
National Principles for Disaster Recovery. Australian Institute for Disaster Resilience [AIDR]
Queensland Disaster Management Training Framework. Version 6. Queensland Fire and Emergency Services, 2020
Inspector-General of Emergency Management Review of Queensland’s Disaster Management Arrangements (QDMA). Office of the Inspector-General of Emergency Management, 2023
Queensland State Disaster Management Plan. State of Queensland, 2023
Queensland 2023 State Disaster Risk Report. Queensland Fire and Emergency Services, 2023
Disaster risk reduction and recovery: Every country protected. Every Child resilient. United Nations Children’s Fund [UNICEF], 2024
Australian Institute for Disaster Resilience [AIDR]. Systemic Disaster Risk (first ed.). 2021
Queensland Evacuation Centre Planning Toolkit. Australian Red Cross, 2017
Queensland Evacuation Centre Management Handbook. Australian Red Cross, 2017
Building Resilience to Natural Disasters Collaboration Guide: Practical Guidance for Queenslanders. Queensland Reconstruction Authority, 2020
Key Research
UNICEF and Royal Far West Children’s Needs Assessment
Children, youth, education special edition. Australian Journal of Emergency Management, 29(1). Australian Emergency Management Institute, 2014
Family functioning in the aftermath of a natural disaster. McDermott BM, Cobham VE., BMC Psychiatry. 2012;12:55. doi: 10.1186/1471-244X-12-55
Impact of childhood exposure to a natural disaster on adult mental health: 20-year longitudinal follow-up study. McFarlane AC, Van Hooff M., British Journal of Psychiatry 2009;195(2):142-8. doi: 10.1186/1471-244X-12-55
Defining Disaster: An Evolving Concept, Rodríguez H, Donner W, Trainor JE, in Handbook of Disaster Research, p. 3-22. Springer International Publishing, 2018
Children experiencing disasters: Definitions, reactions, and predictors of outcomes. Silverman WK, La Greca AM, in Helping children cope with disasters and terrorism, Greca AML, Silverman WK, Vernberg EM, Roberts MC (eds), p. 11–33. American Psychological Association, 2002
The ‘forgotten victims’: Supporting children’s mental health in disasters. Matthews E, Macleod E, Roberts M
Consultation Paper: Development of a whole-of-government trauma strategy for Queensland: Infants and young children. Hoehn E, De Young A
Child and adolescent psychosocial support programs following natural disasters – A scoping review of emerging evidence. Gibbs L, Marinkovic K, Nursey J, Tong LA, Tekin E, Ulubasoglu M, et al. Current Psychiatry Reports. 2021;23(12):82. doi: 10.1007/s11920-021-01293-1
Impacts of Natural Disasters on Children. Kousky C., The Future of Children. 2016;26(1):73-92
Flood Response and Recovery: Children’s Needs Assessment. Royal Far West & Unicef Australia, 2022
From best practices to breakthrough impacts: A science-based approach to building a more promising future for young children and families. Center on the Developing Child, 2016
Connecting the Brain to the Rest of the Body: Early Childhood Development and Lifelong Health Are Deeply Intertwined (Working Paper No.15). National Scientific Council on the Developing Child, 2020
Coming back to relationships for infants and children in disasters: An opinion paper. Abbott G, Fridgant M
Birdie’s Tree: Supporting social emotional wellbeing of babies and young children in a changing world. Baldwin A, De Young A. International Journal of Birth & Parent Education. 2021;8(3)
Community based organisations: developing organisational resilience to build back better. Bains A, Durham J. In: M. Hall, R. Haigh, B. Ingirige, U. Kulatunga, C. Pathirage, D. Amaratunga, eds., Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Building Resilience. University of Salford; United Kingdom, 2013
Five essential elements of immediate and mid-term mass trauma intervention: empirical evidence. Hobfoll SE, Watson P, Bell CC, Bryant RA, Brymer MJ, Friedman MJ, et al. Psychiatry. 2007. doi: 10.1521/psyc.2007.70.4.283
Making a place for children in disaster resilience policy and practice: An opinion paper. Nixon M, Gooyers-Bourke L
Schools and Natural Disaster Recovery: The Unique and Vital Role That Teachers and Education Professionals Play in Ensuring the Mental Health of Students Following Natural Disasters. Le Brocque R, De Young A, Montague G, Pocock S, March S, Triggell N, et al., Journal of Psychologists and Counsellors in Schools. 2016;27(1):1-23. doi: 10.1017/jgc.2016.17
Bushfire education is too abstract. We need to get children into the real world. Towers B, Gough A, Verlie B. 2020
Resilience
Brain Story: Organizational change management. Quality improvement implemented using the Resilience Scale: An Alberta Family Wellness Initiative Proof of Concept. Report 2 of 3. Alberta Family Wellness Initiative, 2023
Childhood Builders – Operationalising Resilience Frames and Tools Evidence Review Report. McDaid L, Edmed S, Maturi J, Xiang N., 2023
In Brief: The Science of Resilience. Harvard University Center on the Developing Child, 2015
Brain Story: Creating Systems Integration Using the Resilience Scale. Report 3 of 3. Alberta Family Wellness Initiative, 2023
Planning for disaster resilience education
Fire to Flourish Program – Monash University
Neighbourhood Centres Queensland Strategy for Disaster Resilience 2023-2026
Supporting Communities, Families and Kids in Disasters
AIDR Education for Young People – Disaster Resilience Education, Australian Institute for Disaster Resilience
AIDR Curriculum Mapping: Disaster Resilience Education in the Australian Curriculum, Australian Institute for Disaster Resilience
Schools and Trauma Hub. Australian Child and Adolescent Trauma Loss and Grief Network [ACATLGN]
National Guidelines for Trauma-Aware Education. Howard J., 2021
Supporting Kids in Disasters
Natural disasters: family guide – Raising Children Network
Triple P – 6 ways to help kids cope in the lead-up to cyclone – (created for TC Alfred 2025)
Trinka and Sam Series: Piplo Productions
ABC Helping Hands: Disaster Resilience Toolkit
Supporting infants and children in disasters: A practice guide – Emerging Minds 2024
Royal Far West Resilient Kids Toolkit
Supporting kids with disability in natural disasters – Raising Children Network
Australian Breastfeeding Association Emergency Resources for Babies and Toddlers
Red Cross Pillowcase Workshops
MacKillop Seasons Stormbirds program
Sesame Street Workshop Guide to Emergencies
Young People in Disasters
Disaster Recovery and Preparedness Report: Voices of Children and young people living in the Northern Rivers. Office of the Advocate for Children and Young People, 2024
Young and Wise: A review of what Australian children and young people say they need to thrive. Australian Research Alliance for Children and Youth [ARACY], 2024
Engaged and Heard! Guidelines on Adolescent Participation and Civic Engagement. UNICEF, 2020
Teen Mental Health First Aid – Empowering Young People
Australian Red Cross Youth Survey Report
headspace – how to cope with the stress of natural disasters
Supporting student voice in disaster recovery – Emerging Minds
Resource spotlight
LINK
Thriving Kids in Disasters Action and Investment Plan
The TKiD Action and Investment Plan provides strategies for funders, decision-makers, communities and organisations to enact impactful solutions and opportunities for resilience building that explicitly encompass the social, physical, mental and cultural wellbeing of kids, families and communities within the broader context of disaster risk reduction.
LINK
Supporting infants and children in disasters: A practice guide
Emerging Minds’ practice guide is a series of resources on child-centred and family-focused approaches in disaster preparedness, response and recovery. It aims to equip practitioners with foundational knowledge and evidence-informed approaches to support infants, children and their families during and after disasters, and promote their long-term healing and wellbeing.
TKiD Action and Investment Plan
Released in April 2025, the TKiD Action and Investment Plan is a resource designed to support funders, decision-makers, communities and organisations to enact impactful solutions for disaster readiness, recovery and resilience building.
Thriving Kids in Disasters
This Project Library complements our work in co-creating and implementing the Thriving Kids in Disasters report. Use this link to find out more about the project.
TKiD Project Library as PDF
The Thriving Kids in Disasters Project Library (including all the links on this page) is also available for download as pdf.
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More about our work ...
Explainer video: "What surrounds us shapes us"
This short explainer video introduces the Resilience Scale and ARACY’s The Nest framework as models to help understand how experiences and environments shape children’s health and development.
Partnerships charter
Our Charter clearly sets out the partnership’s shared goals, values and ways of working to improve systems for Queensland’s children. We invite you to review the Charter and join us if you support our shared vision for Queensland kids.
Report: Queensland Place-Based Rivermap
The Queensland Place-Based Rivermap proposes systemic actions to support our many place-based initiatives. Let’s work together to create local conditions that are good for families and kids.
