Shayne Neumann (Blair, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to recognise the achievements of an outstanding local Brassall woman, Annabelle Johnstone. Annabelle was awarded the Churchill fellowship just a few weeks ago for her outstanding work with people who have been impacted by natural disasters. She is a practitioner of human and social recovery, with 20 years experience in guiding individuals, families and communities through days and weeks of immediate relief to long-term recovery, reconstruction and resilience. Annabelle is currently in Quilpie, and she has been visiting remote locations such as Charleville and Cunnamulla, working with local disaster-management groups as they meet, plan and undertake exercises.

Annabelle has played a critical role in coordinating human and social support services following some of Queensland's biggest disasters. She was recognised for her work in the 2011 Brisbane floods with the National Emergency Medal in the Australian honours. These floods cemented her passion for disaster recovery.

Annabelle's prize of the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust fellowship will send her to the United States of America to further study the human and social impacts of disasters on aged-care facilities and their residents, to identify best-practice models and plans that could be adapted for use in Australia. She wants to ensure that older Australians living in residential aged care and retirement villages or at home are as safe as possible. It's her ambition to ensure we do evacuations and disaster management involving older people better. Congratulations, Annabelle.