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The impact of Natural Hazards Research Australia - Connect. Discover. Act. report detailing the research, partnerships and real-world impact of Natural Hazards Research Australia (the Centre) was launched at the Natural Hazards Research Forum 2026 today.
Developed with Centre end-users and researchers, the report highlights the Centre’s commitment to our mission of safer, more resilient and sustainable Australian communities.
“Impact is our currency; as a research organisation, our value is measured not in citations, but in how we change practice to save lives and build resilient communities from natural hazards in Australia,” said Centre CEO Andrew Gissing.
Natural Hazards Research Australia (the Centre) was set up by the Australian Government to create safer and more resilient and sustainable communities through research, science and innovation. We are Australia’s leading natural hazards research capability, driving real-world change and solutions for our changing disaster risk landscape.
The Centre was funded for 10 years by the Australian Government on 1 July 2021, building on the work of the Bushfire and Natural Hazard Cooperative Research Centre (CRC) and the Bushfire CRC before it.
“Five years into this mission, we continue to facilitate and amplify the impact of this earlier research through strategic knowledge translation to integrate the findings into the sector,” said Mr Gissing.
“As a result, much of the early work of the CRCs continue to benefit every Australian, including through better building codes, evidence-informed infrastructure, and the hazard warnings we use every day, such as the Australian Fire Danger Rating System.
“We are building on the research, having invested more than $36M in 112 total research projects, with 37 completed. Our current work is already creating immediate impact. Every research project is undertaken directly with end-users, allowing findings to be applied immediately to practice. Thanks to this approach, numerous organisations have used Centre-funded research to inform and shape real-time operational decisions.”
In a recent survey of end-users, 76% of respondents said they were very likely, with the rest somewhat likely, to use the research. This strong intent was driven by the Centre’s practical, co‑designed outputs ready for immediate use – with more than 3,880 outputs delivered since the Centre was established in 2021.
In the last five years, the Centre has created an infrastructure that connects the ecosystem, fostering relationships and trust between researchers and practitioners that have literally brought evidence to life.
Our findings and thought leadership have changed the narrative in the sector. By confronting the realities of climate change, our dedicated effort to increase uptake of the research through an end-user driven model is enabling agencies and communities to prepare for a challenging future with research that is useful, useable and used.
The stories in this report provide just a glimpse of the Centre’s impact. As the risks from natural hazards worsen, the Centre’s work is not just urgent – it is essential to ensuring communities are safer, more prepared and resilient.
Download the report here.