The Resilience Canopy

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The Resilience Canopy

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Building strong and challenge-ready communities nation-wide. A not for profit.

The Resilience Canopy seeks to transform Australia’s response to social and climate challenges, with communities at the helm. Our nationwide program provides communities with the skills and frameworks they need to lead their own journey and helps connects communities with a network of partners who bring community actions to life through investment, expertise or in-kind support.

12/10/2026

Congratulations to Raices Latino Hub on receiving a Resilience Canopy Activation Grant!

“RAICES” means “Roots” in Spanish, which reflects this community group’s connection to Latino roots, identity, belonging and community. It’s also an acronym that neatly reflects the heart of its mission:

💃 Resilient Amigos: Building strength together as friends and allies.
🙌 Inspiring Commitment: Encouraging dedication to community well-being.
🛠️ Empowerment: Giving individuals the tools and confidence to thrive.
🌱 Stewardship: Caring for our heritage, environment, and future generations.

Supporting single mothers with no income. Welcoming asylum seekers and refugees looking for friendship and guidance. Hosting hikes that connect people with nature and with each other. Cleaning up local beaches. These are some ways in which RAICES is already creating a network of kindness and support where no one stands alone.

RAICES also draws on established environmental, community and faith-based partnerships, connecting multicultural families with existing expertise, educational resources and meaningful opportunities to contribute, while strengthening social connection across generations.

This grant will enable the group to support more people navigating language barriers, cultural differences, and isolation, and to develop more actions that build the social connections, local networks, and sense of belonging critical for long-term resilience.

Keep track of RAICES’s journey on their Canopy Community profile: https://www.resiliencecanopy.com.au/canopy-communities/community-profile?community_id=recUhMdexpMVXQSg1

06/10/2026

Recently, the Canopy helped bring three community groups – Spadco , Millgrove Residents Action Group, and Warburton Emergency Planning Group - together to share their experiences and knowledge at an immersion event in Millgrove VIC.

It was amazing to witness the three communities swapping stories and learning from each other in such a friendly, supportive environment!

“I really enjoyed meeting the people and getting an idea of the complexity of running a community group here,” says Mary-Lou, chair of SPaDCO, a community group based in Stuarts Point NSW. “It’s given me confidence that other people are doing the same things. I think that's really good. I'll go back inspired.”

“It just makes me so proud to be able to meet other community members and hopefully help them along the way as well,” adds Maureen, president of MRAG.

It's an example of the value of the Canopy Collective network and the benefit of learning from each other across communities and across states.

Video: Moose Hill Media

02/10/2026

September was a busy month for the Canopy 🛣️🙌

Our QLD Coordinator Ash, Executive Director Nat and Founder Brett were invited to Yeronga Community Centre for the first ever Brisbane Southside Resilience Meet & Greet [first image], where community members from neighbouring suburbs explored their challenges, opportunities, connections, and ways for the 5 groups (including 3 Canopy Communities) to learn from each other, pool resources and knowledge, and create a regional powerhouse of connected communities.

It was wonderful to be grounded in the work of Queensland communities before attending the Philanthropy Australia conference, with this year's theme: ‘Mobilising generosity, shaping the future’. There, the Canopy launched our Community Disaster Risk & Resilience Index (CDRRI) - https://www.resiliencecanopy.com.au/community-risk-and-resilience-index - which helps guide better investment into communities [second image].

Nat then travelled to Hobart. With TAS Coordinator Lucy, they met some of the communities that had completed the recent Hobart training, and learnt about their challenges, aspirations and projects. Nat was also part of an AMOS viewing and panel event hosted by University of Tasmania; the documentary, Floodland, shines a humanising light on the impacts of the Lismore floods in 2022.

At the same time, Ash and NSW Coordinator Lyndal attended the Resilient Lismore Disaster Ready Summit [fourth image], where community leaders and organisations, disaster recovery practitioners, and researchers shared practical experience in preparedness, response and long-term recovery. The respect, genuine storytelling, use of traditional language and valued partnerships with the First Nations speakers was a highlight. Our team resonated with the underlying theme around the importance of connections, within communities, with stakeholders and with emergency management agencies that they felt throughout the summit.

Thanks to everyone we spoke with and who continues to believe in the Canopy’s mission to empower communities across Australia! We're looking forward to building on this momentum. If you’re keen to chat with us, get in touch here: https://www.resiliencecanopy.com.au/contact-us

29/09/2026

Join our special webinar introducing our newly released Community Disaster Risk and Resilience Index (CDRRI), a free, publicly available tool that aims to guide better investment into communities across Australia!

📅 When? Thursday 15 October, 12:30-1:30pm

📍 Where? Online via Zoom – RSVP here: https://pb0tudf3y1a.typeform.com/to/FzTurJzb

🤔 Still not sold? Here’s some more info about the CDRRI:

As Australia's exposure to natural hazards continues to grow, so too does the urgency to invest in community resilience in the right places and in the right ways.

Supported by RACQ and ResilientCo, this pilot QLD index is the first in Australia to combine hazard exposure and community resilience at the SA2 level! It brings together bushfire, flood, cyclone and extreme heat exposures, and more than 50 community resilience indicators across social, economic, built, natural, and health and safety environments.

By transforming complex data into accessible insights, and by identifying a) where need is greatest, b) where foundations for change already exist, and c) where investment will have the most lasting impact, the CDRRI is designed to help corporate funders, philanthropy, and government make more informed decisions.

Find out more: https://www.resiliencecanopy.com.au/community-risk-and-resilience-index

28/09/2026

The South Melbourne Sustainability Group (SMSG) has just received a Resilience Canopy Activation Grant!

Formed in 2018, SMSG is a local community group that maintains community gardens in the South Melbourne and Port Melbourne area, with the purpose of creating a circular economy by turning organic waste into food, reducing our ecological footprint and promoting sustainable practices. So far, SMSG has diverted more than 26 tonnes of organic waste from landfill across four garden sites.

Situated in one of Victoria's most densely populated areas, the gardens not only reduce waste and carbon emissions, but are a haven of green space and a place for many local apartment-dwellers to experience plants and soil whilst building valuable connections with their neighbours.

Through a collaborative planning process, the group has already identified five interconnected strategic priorities:
1. Strengthen communication and visibility
2. Rebuild membership and participation
3. Secure sustainable funding
4. Amplify climate action impact by positioning the group within the broader climate movement
5. Build community wellbeing and resilience through partnerships and food sharing

SMSG aims to use this grant to help action these priorities - strengthening their foundations, increasing their visibility, and promoting sustainable growth - as they build more enduring relationships between people, food and nature.

Follow SMSG’s resilience journey on their Canopy Community profile: https://www.resiliencecanopy.com.au/canopy-communities/community-profile?community_id=recNjZTYapGL60Mpj , or on their socials.

24/09/2026

22 Queenslanders from neighbourhood centres, local organisations and resident-led groups assembled in Brisbane recently for one of our final Practitioner Training sessions of 2026.

Most of the attendees were from flood-impacted or at-risk areas, which meant the room was full of strong local experience and an understanding in the importance of community-led approaches.

And while the community members and groups may have been at varying stages of their resilience building journeys, their passion for exploring and thinking through relevant themes like disaster resilience, homelessness and food security was uniform.

A huge thank you to all the participants, the facilitators, and to Brisbane City Council for the belief they showed in our training, and for supporting it as part of their participation in the Queensland Government's Community Recovery and Resilience Officer program. Assistance provided by the Australian and Queensland governments through the jointly funded Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements.

And the impact from the training has been immediate: within weeks, a Southside network meeting was held, bringing together numerous people from the training, as well as alumni from the 2025 Brisbane training and a couple of local groups keen to discover more. We’re thrilled to see further connections and more collaborative approaches to resilience building being fostered already!

21/09/2026

Our annual forum event brought people together to talk about some of the bigger issues, as part of the Canopy's emphasis on listening deeply to communities and supporting them in the right way.

The powerhouse panel of community and industry experts - Maureen, Millgrove Residents Action Group; Mary-Lou, Spadco; Natalie, FRRR; Kate, Resilient Building Council; Nicola, AMP Foundation - discussed why we’re not building the villages we know we need.

This meeting of minds featured plenty of food for thought and showed the benefit of collaborating with like-minded organisations that are working with and for communities.

We’ll continue to have these conversations as part of our support to communities taking steps to become ready for whatever the future holds.

And you can be part of it too! Join the 500+ people in the Canopy Collective, our community of practice, and gain access to our regular catchups, speaker series, and newsletter by signing up here: https://portal.canopyhouse.org/

Video: Moose Hill Media

16/09/2026

“The facilitators ran the sessions very smoothly and kept everything well organised and easy to follow. They created a welcoming, inclusive environment where everyone felt comfortable to participate and share their thoughts... Overall, it was a really engaging and worthwhile experience.”

So said one participant about the 23rd instalment of the Canopy’s Practitioner Training, held earlier this month in Naarm/Melbourne.

This training was one of our largest yet, featuring 33 people – including 40-year volunteers, local council members, community leads within organisations, and members of existing Canopy Communities – from diverse communities across Victoria and further afield, such as Papua New Guinea and Indonesia.

These committed community members thought through timely themes around affordable housing, emergency preparedness, community connection, and supporting the vulnerable. One of the many key insights that emerged: that a community might come together because of a shared concern, maybe flood or fire, but what unfolds through this process is often less about the hazard itself and more about connection and belonging, which are critical in any resilient community.

A big thanks to the facilitators, the City of Melbourne for its welcoming space at the Library at The Dock, the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre (ASRC) caterers for fuelling the thought-provoking conversations, and to everyone who attended; we hope this training helps you develop your community-led actions, and to stay connected with each other through the Canopy Collective, our community of practice.

Learn more about our empowering Practitioner Training here: https://www.resiliencecanopy.com.au/training

14/09/2026

The next Canopy Community to receive a Resilience Canopy Activation Grant is Southside Resilience Collective (SRC), a volunteer-led community group based in Naarm, St Kilda and the surrounding districts.

SRC believes that community‑led collaboration is essential for building climate resilience, that care and inclusion must anchor activities, and that practical action and ongoing capacity‑building are vital for living in a changing climate.

As such, the group supports grassroots environmental projects, fosters strong partnerships, and hosts community events and training related to the four key themes highlighted in their completed Resilience Plan:
💪 Organisational Resilience and Capacity
🌞 Climate Adaptation and Extreme Weather Resilience
🤝 First Nations Partnership and Cultural Resilience
🥘 Circular Economy and Food Security

SRC has already formed an engaged group and undertaken significant groundwork through the Canopy process, which has aided them in developing a clear set of priorities. This grant will enable them to keep building vital social connections and local networks, and help them to action their community priorities.

View SRC's community Resilience Plan and keep track of the group's journey on its Canopy Community profile: https://www.resiliencecanopy.com.au/canopy-communities/community-profile?community_id=recKcUBh6S7OxlEUL

10/09/2026

We are excited to release the Community Disaster Risk and Resilience Index (CDRRI), a free, publicly available tool that aims to guide better investment into communities across Australia.

Being piloted in Queensland, this index is the first in Australia to combine hazard exposure and community resilience at the SA2 level! It brings together bushfire, flood, cyclone and extreme heat exposures, and more than 50 indicators that consider community resilience across social, economic, built, natural, and health and safety environments.

By transforming complex data into accessible insights, and by identifying where need is greatest, where foundations for change already exist, and where investment will have the most lasting impact, the CDRRI is designed to help corporate funders, philanthropy, and government make more informed decisions.

This week, The Resilience Canopy, supported by RACQ and ResilientCo, launched the pilot Queensland CDRRI at the Philanthropy Australia Conference in Brisbane. Thank you to everyone who attended and who has provided feedback thus far. These learnings will help us improve it as we look to expand it to other states.

Because, as Australia's exposure to natural hazards continues to grow, so too does the urgency to invest in community resilience in the right places and in the right ways!

Explore the CDRRI for yourself on desktop (not currently mobile-friendly) and please let us know your thoughts! https://resilienceindex.au

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http://www.resiliencecanopy.com.au/

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