Monash University Disaster Resilience Initiative
Led by Associate Professor Jonathan Abrahams, the Monash University Disaster Resilience Initiative (MUDRI) delivers education, research and projects that develop capacities and aim to strengthen emergency management, health systems, and community development, to reduce risks and build resilience to disasters, climate change, and other societal disruptions. MUDRI’s work lies at the intersection of the Monash University’s Impact 2030 global challenges of thriving communities, climate change and geopolitical security.
The team’s multidisciplinary expertise spans emergency risk management, public health, climate adaptation, humanitarian action, and social science systems. The team co-develop, deliver and evaluate evidence-based projects that address real-world challenges and opportunities that have substantial effects on people, nature and the environment, infrastructure and other valued assets at local, national, regional and global levels. MUDRI is an implementing partner in Fire to Flourish and their collaborations extend across Monash University faculties and institutes in Australia and Malaysia, the World Health Organization headquarters and regional offices, Anglia Ruskin University (UK), and national partnerships with Emergency Management Victoria, the Red Cross, Gender and Disaster Australia, and several Australian universities.
Major projects
In 2024, the team delivered several key projects with national and global impact. In partnership with King Khalid University, the team developed a strategic framework for forest fire management in Saudi Arabia, culminating in a community-focused presentation at COP16 in Riyadh. The project provides a comprehensive roadmap for strengthening systems to manage the risks of forest fires, with an emphasis on community programs to reduce the incidence of fires in recreational and farming areas.
Domestically, the team co-authored a significant report with Fire to Flourish, 'Internally Displaced People: 2019–2020 Bushfire, an iterative analysis', proposing actionable steps to better support displaced Australians, submitted to the National Emergency Management Agency.
Other major collaborations included work with Monash University’s HumaniSE Lab to improve the inclusivity of early warning tools like VicEmergency, and collaborations on Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) with Monash’s School of Psychology and the University of Melbourne, that have focused on MHPSS preparedness and workforce capability development
Team milestones
The team’s work was supported by a diverse funding base, including King Khalid University, the National Emergency Management Agency, philanthropic partners of Fire to Flourish, and Monash University’s Incubator Program. The team were successful in attracting the highly competitive and collaborative Monash Incubator Program Boost funding to lead a multi-campus initiative on resilient hospitals and health care facilities in the Asia-Pacific region.
Impact
MUDRI builds the capacities of current and future multidisciplinary workforces through their practice-oriented educational programs for national and international students and participants. In 2024, this included the delivery of two accredited Masters-level units and approval to update their offerings in 2025 to focus on disaster risk management, humanitarian action, community resilience and climate change adaptation. The team invests further in youth through the NHRA Disaster Challenge, and several students from these units also took up opportunities to extend their learning by taking internships and capstone projects with Associate Professor Abrahams.
The Monash University Disaster Resilience Initiative team’s distinct strength lies in bridging academic and practical experience - delivering applied, systems-focused research that addresses real-world challenges while educating the next generation of disaster resilience professionals. With extensive local, national and international networks the team can bring together collaborators with experience, expertise and local knowledge. A key asset of the team is their substantial policy and practitioner experience, providing a strong understanding of the practical realities of systems, workforces and communities, and producing collaborative outputs that are usable and impactful, enabling safer, sustainable and resilient communities in Australia, the Asia-Pacific Region and worldwide.