A photograph of two lecterns and other furniture being stored at the Canterbury Cultural Recovery Centre.
The Canterbury earthquakes destroyed the Christchurch CBD and caused massive disruption to business across the region. There was an urgent need to support business survival and foster economic recovery. Recover Canterbury is a hub providing seamless support for businesses affected by the earthquakes, giving them easy access to government and commercial expertise in a one-stop shop.
An entry from Deb Robertson's blog for 31 May 2013 entitled, "One thousand days....".
An entry from Deb Robertson's blog for 20 January 2012 entitled, "This week I've been....".
An entry from Deb Robertson's blog for 10 December 2011 entitled, "A quilt from recycled shirts and other bits and pieces...".
An entry from Deb Robertson's blog for 17 September 2011 entitled, "Look what I found in my sewing room (1)".
An entry from Deb Robertson's blog for 31 July 2012 entitled, "Planning a Road Cone Quilt....".
We measure the longer-term effect of a major earthquake on the local economy, using night-time light intensity measured from space, and investigate whether insurance claim payments for damaged residential property affected the local recovery process. We focus on the destructive Canterbury Earthquake Sequence (CES) 2010 -2011 as our case study. Uniquely for this event, more than 95% of residential housing units were covered by insurance, but insurance payments were staggered over 5 years, enabling us to identify their local impact. We find that night-time luminosity can capture the process of recovery and describe the recovery’s determinants. We also find that insurance payments contributed significantly to the process of economic recovery after the earthquake, but delayed payments were less affective and cash settlement of claims were more effective than insurance-managed repairs in contributing to local recovery.
A poster created by Empowered Christchurch to advertise their submission to the CERA Draft Transition Recovery Plan on social media.The poster reads, "Submission. CERA Draft Transition Recovery Plan. 5. In your opinion, is there a better way to report on these recovery issues? Looking at the recovery from the perspective of the eastern suburbs, it is impossible to avoid thinking of phenomenon referred to as 'Disaster Capitalism' and considering the aspects that have already become evident in the recovery process. Loss of equity and quality of life, risk transfer and other substantial shifts are taking place. We suggest that a regular mini-census should be conducted through the remainder of the recovery at intervals of 6-12 months to monitor deprivation, insurance cover (or lack of it), mortgage, home equity, and rental status. If unexpected changes identified, investigation and correction measures should be implemented. We need a city that is driven by the people that live in it, and enabled by a bureaucracy that accepts and mitigates risks, rather than transferring them to the most vulnerable residents ."
In response to the February 2011 earthquake, Parliament enacted the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Act. This emergency legislation provided the executive with extreme powers that extended well beyond the initial emergency response and into the recovery phase. Although New Zealand has the Civil Defence Emergency Management Act 2002, it was unable to cope with the scale and intensity of the Canterbury earthquake sequence. Considering the well-known geological risk facing the Wellington region, this paper will consider whether a standalone “Disaster Recovery Act” should be established to separate an emergency and its response from the recovery phase. Currently, Government policy is to respond reactively to a disaster rather than proactively. In a major event, this typically involves the executive being given the ability to make rules, regulations and policy without the delay or oversight of normal legislative process. In the first part of this paper, I will canvas what a “Disaster Recovery Act” could prescribe and why there is a need to separate recovery from emergency. Secondly, I will consider the shortfalls in the current civil defence recovery framework which necessitates this kind of heavy governmental response after a disaster. In the final section, I will examine how
A close-up photograph of mannequins stacked in the storage shelves at the Canterbury Cultural Recovery Centre.
A photograph of an inventory list of some of the items stored at the Canterbury Cultural Recovery Centre.
A close-up photograph of a stuffed penguin that is being stored at the Canterbury Cultural Recovery Centre.
A pdf transcript of Sara Green's second earthquake story, captured by the UC QuakeBox Take 2 project. Interviewer: Laura Moir. Transcriber: Sarah Woodfield.
Transcript of Garth's earthquake story, captured by the UC QuakeBox project.
An entry from Deb Robertson's blog for 3 September 2012 entitled, "There's a lot you can learn in two years....".
A photograph of signs outside a Recovery Assistance Centre set up after the 22 February 2011 earthquake.
A photograph of furniture being stored on top of a pallet at the at the Canterbury Cultural Recovery Centre.
A photograph of one of the smaller rooms of the Canterbury Cultural Recovery Centre. This room stores the Kaiapoi Museum's collection.
A document which outlines how SCIRT and the New Zealand Red Cross worked together to aid the recovery of Christchurch.
A photograph of a cannon and other large objects that are being stored at the Canterbury Cultural Recovery Centre.
Workers at the entrance of the Vehicle Recovery Centre in the car park of the Christchurch Botanic Gardens.
As damage and loss caused by natural hazards have increased worldwide over the past several decades, it is important for governments and aid agencies to have tools that enable effective post-disaster livelihood recovery to create self-sufficiency for the affected population. This study introduces a framework of critical components that constitute livelihood recovery and the critical factors that lead to people’s livelihood recovery. A comparative case study is employed in this research, combined with questionnaire surveys and interviews with those communities affected by large earthquakes in Lushan, China and in Christchurch and Kaikōura, New Zealand. In Lushan, China, a framework with four livelihood components was established, namely, housing, employment, wellbeing and external assistance. Respondents considered recovery of their housing to be the most essential element for livelihood diversification. External assistance was also rated highly in assisting with their livelihood recovery. Family ties and social connections seemed to have played a larger role than that of government agencies and NGOs. However, the recovery of livelihood cannot be fully achieved without wellbeing aspects being taken into account, and people believed that quality of life and their physical and mental health were essential for livelihood restoration. In Christchurch, New Zealand, the identified livelihood components were validated through in-depth interviews. The results showed that the above framework presenting what constitutes successful livelihood recovery could also be applied in Christchurch. This study also identified the critical factors to affect livelihood recovery following the Lushan and Kaikōura earthquakes, and these include community safety, availability of family support, level of community cohesion, long-term livelihood support, external housing recovery support, level of housing recovery and availability of health and wellbeing support. The framework developed will provide guidance for policy makers and aid agencies to prioritise their strategies and initiatives in assisting people to reinstate their livelihood in a timely manner post-disaster. It will also assist the policy makers and practitioners in China and New Zealand by setting an agenda for preparing for livelihood recovery in non-urgent times so the economic impact and livelihood disruption of those affected can be effectively mitigated.
A PDF copy of an article written by All Right? that featured in CERA's Greater Christchurch Recovery Update - Issue 29 (February 2014). The article is titled "Award-winning Canterbury campaign attracts international attention" and discusses the attention All Right? has received from Huffington Post, Australian Red Cross and the United Nations.
An entry from Deb Robertson's blog for 20 March 2013 entitled, "Road works, Road cones and a Triangle Quilt".
Disasters, either man-made or natural, are characterised by a multiplicity of factors including loss of property, life, environmental degradation, and psychosocial malfunction of the affected community. Although much research has been undertaken on proactive disaster management to help reduce the impacts of natural and man-made disasters, many challenges still remain. In particular, the desire to re-house the affected as quickly as possible can affect long-term recovery if a considered approach is not adopted. Promoting recovery activities, coordination, and information sharing at national and international levels are crucial to avoid duplication. Mannakkara and Wilkinson’s (2014) modified “Build Back Better” (BBB) concept aims for better resilience by incorporating key resilience elements in post-disaster restoration. This research conducted an investigation into the effectiveness of BBB in the recovery process after the 2010–2011 earthquakes in greater Christchurch, New Zealand. The BBB’s impact was assessed in terms of its five key components: built environment, natural environment, social environment, economic environment, and implementation process. This research identified how the modified BBB propositions can assist in disaster risk reduction in the future, and used both qualitative and quantitative data from both the Christchurch and Waimakariri recovery processes. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with key officials from the Christchurch Earthquake Recovery Authority, and city councils, and supplemented by reviewing of the relevant literature. Collecting data from both qualitative and quantitative sources enabled triangulation of the data. The interviewees had directly participated in all phases of the recovery, which helped the researcher gain a clear understanding of the recovery process. The findings led to the identification of best practices from the Christchurch and Waimakariri recovery processes and underlined the effectiveness of the BBB approach for all recovery efforts. This study contributed an assessment tool to aid the measurement of resilience achieved through BBB indicators. This tool provides systematic and structured approach to measure the performance of ongoing recovery.
A pdf transcript of Vic Bartley's second earthquake story, captured by the UC QuakeBox Take 2 project. Interviewer: Samuel Hope. Transcriber: Sarah Woodfield.
A pdf transcript of Ann's second earthquake story, captured by the UC QuakeBox Take 2 project. Interviewer: Samuel Hope. Transcriber: Josie Hepburn.
A story submitted by Mike Williams to the QuakeStories website.
A photograph of a model ship that is being stored in one of the stacks at the Canterbury Cultural Recovery Centre.