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INDEPENDENT REVIEW OF THE COBARGO COMMUNITY BUSHFIRE RECOVERY FUND: AUGUST 2024 A STORY ABOUT COMMUNITYLED RECOVERY, GREATER CONNECTIONS, SHARING, GROWTH AND HEALING

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posted on 2025-01-08, 22:22 authored by Caroline SpencerCaroline Spencer, Lara Werbeloff, Briony Rogers, JANA-AXINJA PASCHENJANA-AXINJA PASCHEN

This report documents and shares the story of the Cobargo Community Bushfire Recovery Fund (CCBRF), to reflect on its experience, celebrate its achievements, and to offer the lessons learned to other communities preparing for, or recovering from disasters. These lessons are also relevant to government agencies, philanthropic and not-for-profit organisations who wish to support communities in strengthening their recovery and resilience. With the help of generous donations from across Australia and the world, and driven by the energy, creativity and compassionate spirit of local people, the CCBRF (also ‘the Fund’ hereafter) was established in Cobargo on 20 January 2020, following the bushfires that devastated Cobargo and many other communities along Australia’s East Coast in the summer of 2019/2020. The Fund is a proud example of a community-controlled initiative following a major disaster that was able to help relieve the significant damage experienced by the Cobargo community and its region, and support its recovery via equitable and inclusive, community-led funding processes. Carried by strong collaborative values and governance principles, dedicated volunteers, and the trust it enjoyed within its community and with donors, the Fund successfully managed almost $800,000 in donations and funded 54 projects that contributed to rebuilding the town and the recovery of its community over more than three years. As a direct result of CCBRF seed funding, some projects leveraged significant further funds and helped galvanise new community organisations; others addressed government funding gaps such as the upgrade of the Wandella Road Fire Station. Of the original donations, $200,000 are being held for the beautification of the Cobargo main street, once its rebuild is completed. Drawing extensively on CCBRF documents and interviews with donors, grant recipients, and members of external agencies, this report identifies several key lessons from the Cobargo experience that may assist other communities and initiatives that seek to strengthen their community and build their resilience to disasters. There are also lessons to be learned about current systems and their ability - or failure - to create the conditions that enable communities to lead their own recovery and resilience strengthening. The importance of nurturing social connections and investing in local skills for a community’s ability to self-organise and support each other through chaos, trauma and recovery speaks clearly through the story of Cobargo and the key lessons documented here.

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