Webinar Recording - Which EMPA Principle?

Which EMPA Principle? Approaches to working with communities in recovery

The EMPA Principles of communication in disaster & emergency aim to go beyond the one-line statements and offer insight into the context and guidance towards making the aspirations into realistic good practice.

The last few years have seen their fair share of disasters and recovery and situations that we are continuously learning from. 

In February’s webinar we invite three guests to speak on Which EMPA Principle was most relevant or has been applied in their experiences of recent disaster and recovery. 

Facilitator: 
Dr Kate Delmo, EMPA Board

Panellists:
Mark Trüdinger, Northland Civil Defence, NZ
Mike Wassing, Queensland Reconstruction Authority
Christian Longobardi,  South Australia Department of Premier and Cabinet

DATE: Wednesday 28 February 2024

About the panellists

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Mark Trüdinger
Group Recovery Manager, Northland Civil Defence Emergency Management, NZ

Mark Trüdinger

Group Recovery Manager, Northland Civil Defence Emergency Management

Mark Trüdinger is the Group Recovery Manager for Northland Civil Defence Emergency Management. With an initial background in communications, he has worked for the last two decades for an organisation who specialise in working with communities who have experienced hardship and trauma after disasters, war, and genocide. His approach to community engagement in the current Recovery from 2023’s Cyclone Gabrielle blends traditional approaches from communications and community engagement with collective community practices. As part of the current Recovery, and preparing the Regional Recovery Plan for Northland, New Zealand, he has worked with more than 500 people and 100 organisations over the last 12 months.
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Christian Longobardi
Senior Project Officer, Security, Emergency and Recovery Management (SERM), Department of the Premier and Cabinet

Christian Longobardi

Senior Project Officer, Security, Emergency and Recovery Management (SERM), Department of the Premier and Cabinet, Government of South Australia

Christian Longobardi is a Senior Project Officer with the South Australian Government’s Security, Emergency and Recovery Management (SERM) team. Through the Department of the Premier and Cabinet (DPC), the SERM team works to coordinate recovery activities across government and non-government sectors to increase the state's disaster recovery capacity and understanding.

Christian has previously worked as a journalist and photographer in South Australia’s Riverland for The Murray Pioneer newspaper, before returning to Adelaide to work in DPC’s Media Monitoring Unit. With the arrival of the River Murray flood, one of South Australia’s most devastating natural disasters in history, Christian joined SERM as a Communications Officer to help coordinate recovery communications across government agencies, local governments, and participating recovery partners to ensure impacted communities remained informed through every stage of their recovery journey.

Christian completed several tasks within the communications role, including the creation and distribution of River Murray Flood Community Newsletters to impacted communities, updating the state’s online recovery resource - recovery.sa.gov.au - and chairing the River Murray Public Information Coordination Group.
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Mike Wassing
Deputy Commissioner, Deputy State Recovery Coordinator, Queensland Reconstruction Authority

Mike Wassing

Deputy Commissioner, Deputy State Recovery Coordinator, Queensland Reconstruction Authority

Mike is committed to supporting communities and strengthening Queensland’s disaster management and resilience capabilities.

Whilst Mike is normally Deputy Commissioner in Queensland Fire And Emergency Services and Chief Officer RFSQ and SESQ, he is currently working with QRA responsible for the recovery coordination for 13 councils impacted by TC Jasper in Queensland’s far north.

Serving in emergency services in both Queensland and Victoria for more than 35 years, Mike has extensive experience leading the management and coordination of prevention, preparedness, response and recovery for all hazards as well as strategic control and coordination for major emergencies. He led the QFES Volunteerism Strategy and 2030 Futures strategy and champions many initiatives in the workplace to positively change organisational culture. He is notable for his achievement in increasing women's equality within the workplace by providing support, coaching and mentoring to many officers to guide their progression.

Mike holds a Bachelor of Applied Science in Environmental Management and Land Use Policy, a Diploma in Firefighting Operations and Fire Management, and a Graduate Diploma of Business (Strategic Management). He was awarded the National Emergency Medal for the 2009 Black Saturday fires in Victoria and was a participant in the Executive Fellowship Program of Australia and New Zealand School of Government 2017. In 2019, Mike received the Australian Fire Service Medal (AFSM) for consistently demonstrating exceptional leadership to enhance volunteerism in emergency services and driving organisational change.

Session recording

Additional links & Resources

Shared by panellists:

To find out more about the EMPA Principles, visit the website here: www.empa.org.au.