Australia’s urban areas are exposed to multiple and interacting natural hazards, such as extreme heat, storms, cyclones, storm surge and coastal inundation, flash flooding, bushfires, and earthquakes. Such natural hazards can lead to disasters when they trigger multidimensional, cascading and compounding impacts that exceed the coping capacities of urban systems.  

The complex, tightly interconnected and dynamic nature of urban systems complicates risk assessment and reduction, while impacts might be exacerbated by climate change impacts and rapid urbanisation. Risk reduction in urban areas requires decisions, coordination, and action by a wide range of stakeholders. Moreover, urban areas are highly diverse; not only spatially, physically and economically, but also socially, culturally and politically. Increasing our understanding of the risks and vulnerabilities is an important enabler for actioning urban resilience. 

This research will lead to a better understanding of how urban systems may be disrupted, who is most impacted and why, how risks and impacts may change under the influence of factors like climate change, and suitable processes or tools for operationalising investments in urban resilience. 

The project is funded by Natural Hazards Research Australia.