Funding for prevention, preparedness and recovery projects

FRRR and Suncorp Group are inviting local not-for-profit organisations (NFPs) in remote, rural and regional Queensland communities impacted by Cyclone Jasper and Kirrily to apply for a share of $300,000 in funding to support ongoing resilience building and recovery efforts.

This week marks six months since Cyclone Jasper crossed the Far North coast (13 December 2023) causing widespread destruction and five months since Cyclone Kirrily crossed the North Queensland coast (25 January 2024) and became a state-wide disaster event, as the rain moved south and west (3 February 2024).

Local NFPs in the Far North and North Queensland, and other remote, rural and regional communities impacted by the cyclones, including McKinlay  and Western Downs[1], can apply for grants up to $20,000 through the Rebuilding Futures program, for community-led activities that address local prevention, preparedness and recovery needs.

Nina O’Brien, FRRR’s Disaster Resilience & Recovery Lead, said that it is vital that disaster-impacted communities, are supported to proactively take action to prevent and prepare for, as well as respond to, the impacts of extreme weather events like Tropical Cyclones Jasper and Kirrily.

“The effects of an extreme weather event do not dissipate when the immediate danger is over. Recovery needs to evolve over the medium to long-term, as locals identify ways of building community resilience and reducing the impact of future disasters on community wellbeing and physical infrastructure.

“But for a community to build back better after a disaster, it’s critical that the needs of all groups in the regions, particularly members of the community with less access to resources, information and support, are considered and prioritised, both in recovery and in planning for potential future events.

“Ultimately, it is the people and processes that really make communities tick and make a difference in effective disaster recovery, prevention and preparedness.

“These grants are flexible and can support a wide range of projects, so we encourage groups to think laterally about what can assist their community,” Ms O’Brien said.

Funded by Suncorp Group, the Rebuilding Futures program has already distributed more than $1 million in recent years to 62 community groups across the country.

Steve Johnston, Suncorp Group CEO, said Suncorp was proud to support community-led recovery projects for regional Queensland communities impacted by severe weather events.

“Queensland is the most disaster-impacted state in the country and regional Queensland, particularly the Far North and North, has certainly borne the brunt of events like Cyclones Jasper and Kirrily,” Mr Johnston said.

“Suncorp is a proud Queensland-based company and will always be there to help our customers rebuild their lives following these devastating events, but we also understand how important it is to help community groups be prepared, build back better and assist that recovery in the medium and longer term.

“That’s why we partner with FRRR to distribute grants directly to community organisations because these groups have the local knowledge to know where funding is needed most.

“I want to encourage local organisations who may have been impacted by Cyclones Jasper and Kirrily to apply for funding for projects that will make their communities more resilient for the future,” Mr Johnston said.

A Grantseeker Workshop, including a Q&A on the Rebuilding Future’s grant program, will be held online on Tuesday 18th June 2024, from 12:30 – 1:30 pm AEST. Register for the Workshop at: https://events.humanitix.com/suncorp-rebuilding-futures-2024-grantseeker-workshop.

Grant applications close 5pm AEST, 11 July 2024.

For more information about which LGAs are eligible, the type of projects that can be funded and to register for the Grantseeker Workshop, visit www.frrr.org.au/Rebuilding-Futures.

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[1] List of eligible LGAs – https://frrr.org.au/wp-content/uploads/R4-Eligible-LGAs.pdf

With more than two metres of rain falling across Far North Queensland in the last few days, communities are now facing an unimaginable clean up and recovery journey ahead.

After working alongside disaster-affected communities for more than 20 years, we know that the small, remote communities in this region will need support in their recovery over the medium to long-term. That’s why FRRR is launching a Flood Recovery Appeal.

While the extent of the impact is still unfolding and immediate response needs are being coordinated, once that support has ceased, in about 12-18 months, there will still be significant community-level needs still to be addressed. Those will evolve over the coming years too – moving from a focus on physical things that enhance safety in the event of a ‘next time’, to helping address volunteer fatigue and eventually supporting general community wellbeing, economic recovery and organisational capacity building.

Our role – with the support of our partners – is to be there as they move through this journey, offering patience, continuity, flexibility and agility to move how and when the community is ready – with fit-for-purpose funding and resourcing support.

That’s why FRRR established the Disaster Resilience and Recovery Fund (DRRF) in 2019 – to ensure that we can support grassroots community organisations across remote, rural and regional Australia that often miss out on receiving funds donated for disaster recovery.

This Fund ensures that FRRR can support recovery when the community is ready, usually long after the headlines have faded. It also funds preparedness initiatives so that communities are in a better position to recover from a disaster event. Funds are invested with the returns used to fund grassroots groups to implement the recovery initiatives that they prioritise, long after immediate response and relief funding has ceased.

Alternatively, donations can be made directly to the Prepare & Recover stream of FRRR’s small grants program, SRC, which provides grants of up to $25,000 to communities impacted by disasters. Our supporters are able to nominate that they would like their funding to be directed to supporting communities impacted by a particular disaster, such as TC Jasper.. We report regularly to our supporters and, for significant donations, can trace contributions through to the specific projects that funding has made possible.

Taking a holistic approach

At FRRR, we view disasters as environmental shocks that remote, rural, regional communities regularly experience. We know they are increasing in frequency and severity; what makes them complex is not knowing when they will occur, where, or the severity and nature of their impact.

In operational terms, FRRR has a standing disaster philanthropy model that we scale when a major disaster occurs. Each year, with support from hundreds of donor partners, we provide grants and capacity support to around 600 remote, rural and regional places across the country via almost 1,200 grants. This reach gives us a good footprint and connection points that we can naturally tap into when disasters occur – and it means we are building on the resilience and capability that has been built up in between disaster events.

Recovery and preparedness efforts depend on the social ties, quality of community infrastructure, depth and breadth of skills and networks, cultural knowledge, and the health of local service systems, not-for-profits and community groups. FRRR’s approach is to balance funding for recovery and preparedness to support people and community-led processes as well as infrastructure and equipment. This approach enables improved outcomes as communities move through their recovery and aims to support needs now and as they evolve.

If you’d like to know more either about our approach or how you can help, please get in touch with us via info@frrr.org.au or partnerships@frrr.org.au.