The St Andrews Fire Awareness Project and Nillumbik Shire Council have won the Victorian State 2014 Resilient Australia Award.
The work included the production of a calendar that is local, specific and contains important fire ready information.
Nillumbik Shire Mayor Councillor Michael Young said the calendar contains useful tips on preparing for bushfires, and was delivered to every household in St Andrews.
“Nillumbik is a resilient community which can be seen from two of our
fire-affected areas winning state-wide resilience awards.
“The Resilient Australia Awards recognise and promote activities that encourage excellence and innovation across all sectors of society in relation to resilience.”
Helen Kenney, chair of the project, said Nillumbik is now through to the national finals.
“Strengthening community resilience is a challenge, more so for a community still recovering from disaster.
“The St Andrews community was left deeply affected by the impact of the 2009 Black Saturday fires, it was both directly and indirectly affected.
“The Fire Preparedness Calendar promoted and encouraged residents to take ‘small simple steps’ to better prepare their property.
“It encourages residents to incorporate preparedness into everyday living, helping to shift the focus from fear-based preparing and planning, to restoring a sense of celebration and enjoyment about the environment in which they live.”
