The challenge

This Issue This is a part of the Hazards feature

By - , Build 153

Leading thinkers from science and government have joined forces to start developing ways to manage the risk to our built environment and communities from natural hazards.

A HIGH-LEVEL FORUM on managing risk held last year asked the question, ‘Should we invest in more resilient buildings and infrastructure?’

Identifying priorities for the future

The Built Environment Leaders Forum brought together industry stakeholders from government and the private sector. It was a joint initiative between MBIE, BRANZ, EQC and supporting government agencies.

The aim was to address cross-sector issues and agree on priorities to take forward that are based on five main themes of strategic directions — economics of resilience, smarter land use, better building performance and resilient infrastructure.

Informed by Canterbury lessons

Discussions at the 2-day forum were framed by an MBIE Canterbury lessons learned document and supported by several New Zealand presenters and four international experts.

‘The Canterbury experience highlighted vulnerabilities in the way we build, the land we build on, the fragility of our infrastructure and, above all, the high cost of lack of resilience,’ said Dr Larry Bellamy, MBIE Chair of the forum steering committee.

Collaboration is key

‘The forum recognised that strengthening our approach to resilience required collaboration between the private and public sectors. Having these people in the same room for 2 days to better understand the issues we’re facing and what needs to happen to start tackling them was a great first step.’

A key theme to emerge was the need for a coordinated, multi-agency work programme with clear pathways to implementation, working closely with the private sector and communities, underpinned by robust data and evidence.

Other needs from the forum include:

  • a better framework and governance at national level for managing risks to the built environment
  • incentives and tools that justify appropriate levels of private and public sector investment in urban resilience
  • data and evidence to tell the resilience story and to develop cost-effective risk-reduction and mitigation measures.

Challenges for leaders

Andrew Kibblewhite, Chief Executive, Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, identified four key leadership challenges:

  • To understand risks and think through what to do about them.
  • To get better at making the case for action.
  • To get better at working together.
  • To keep learning from Canterbury, from international experience and from each other.

The forum recognised that strengthening the approach to resilience requires collaboration between private and public sectors, professions and strong public engagement.

‘We’re keen to build on that momentum and get some real traction on the resilience discussion,’ said Dr Bellamy.

‘Our ultimate goal is to develop urban resilience so that communities can continue to function at acceptable levels after a natural disaster.’

Action plan for the future

Since the forum, MBIE has held a workshop with key stakeholders to begin developing an action plan and seek agreement on priorities and accountabilities.

Download the PDF

More articles about these topics

Articles are correct at the time of publication but may have since become outdated.

Advertisement

Advertisement