Entry received from: Tauranga City Council
Category: The Department of Internal Affairs Award for Excellence in Community Engagement
The Tauranga City Council Emergency Management Team, with support from SkillsVR, has created an earthquake and tsunami virtual reality (VR) experience that can be used by people in their own homes or taken on the road as a mobile educational tool.
The mobile and engaging nature of VR technology means that emergency management professionals will be able to conduct community engagement, educating the public in disaster readiness and resilience across New Zealand in a new and innovative way with the potential to access communities that are otherwise challenging to engage with. This simulation is thought to be the first of its kind in New Zealand and there is potential to create other hazard-focused VR simulations.
Disaster preparedness is one of the core messages that emergency management professionals deliver on a daily basis. Information on procedures and actions to be taken and avoided in critical situations is available, but most people are unaware of these, have no prior knowledge, or do not see the risk as significant enough to take preparedness action. Many communities across New Zealand either live, work or play in areas that face a significant risk from earthquakes and tsunamis, yet do not have easy access to good contemporary science resources to build awareness of risk and develop resilience.
Thank you to our category sponsor