Students Creating Solutions to Natural Disasters To Help Communities with Naturally Brave

Update: happy to announce that the Naturally Brave Project by Makers Empire, Bushfire Kids Connect, and Growing With Gratitude has won the Australian Resilient Australia Awards in the Mental Health & Wellbeing category!

Fresh off Naturally Brave’s win at the 2024 South Australian (SA) Resilient Australia Awards*, which recognise outstanding contributions to community safety and disaster resilience, students from 19 SA primary schools recently came together at Kidman Park Primary School for a Naturally Brave showcase event. Students shared what they have learned about natural disasters, supporting their emotional well being, and their innovative solutions to problems caused by natural disasters.

The Naturally Brave program was delivered over terms 2-4, 2024 by Makers Empire in partnership with local charity, Bushfire Kids Connect, which seeks to create connectedness between children and bushfire impacted families, and Growing With Gratitude, a SA business that promotes mental well-being and resilience to students via workshops and resources. The funding for Naturally Brave was provided by the Australian Government’s National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) Disaster Ready Fund.

The Naturally Brave program is designed to:

Help students understand their potential disaster risk in their local community context and create a ‘disaster reduction risk action plan’ responsive to their location;
Help students to be well-informed and understand why natural disasters happen, how they are controlled, their impact on the environment, and approaches to disaster management that promote sustainability including indigenous land management;
Support students’ emotional wellbeing by teaching skills including ownership and a focus on service to others (volunteering), self-awareness, gratitude, empathy and kindness, as well as coping strategies in an evacuation; and
Empower students as problem solvers and designers who can make a difference in their families’ lives. Students will use the design thinking problem-solving methodology and 3D tools by Makers Empire to create solutions to help during an evacuation like packing a bag, helping family members, and protecting animals etc.

The 19 primary schools were Loxton Lutheran School, Trinity College Roseworthy, Millicent North Primary School, Nuriootpa Primary School, Reidy Park Primary School, Mount Pleasant Primary School, North Ingle School, Bute Early Learning and Primary School, Roseworthy Primary School, Nairne Primary School, St Joseph’s School Clare, Orroroo Area School, Karoonda Area School, Gumeracha Primary School, Investigator College, Kidman Park Primary School, St Joseph’s School West Hindmarsh, Thiele Primary School and St Peter’s Collegiate Girls’ School, Stonyfell.

The 19 schools received a package worth approximately $8,500 including: teachers participated in the accredited Makers Empire Learning By Design program; a 12-month Makers Empire School Subscription; a naturally brave challenge course; a 12-month subscription to the Growing With Gratitude fully resourced online program, copies of the Growing With Gratitude: Building Resilience, Happiness & Mental Wellbeing in Our Schools & Homes book for staff members, Flashforge 3D printer and PLA filament; and hospitality for teacher professional development and student showcase days.

Congratulations to the winners of the Naturally Brave showcase:

Industry Award Winners as assessed by industry judges:

Team 2 from Investigator College designed the Regrowth Elephant. It goes through bushfire zones, shooting out seeds and water to revegetate native areas and farm lands. It also scoops up the ashes and turns it into fertiliser.
Team 1 from St Joseph’s Claire wanted to solve the problem of frost causing terrible damage to local grapevines as they did in September and October. So they created a steam machine powered by wind turbines and solar panels that sits under the vines to monitor the temperature and provide steam to prevent frost.

Peer Award Winner as voted on by the students:

Team 2 from St Peter’s Collegiate Girls School Stonyfell were inspired by a recent bushfire at Caralue Bluff Conservation Park. Firefights were getting tired and had to call for backup numerous times in dangerous conditions. So they created a fire drone fleet to help prevent danger to firefighters. There are two attachments: one attachment has an infrared camera to help identify and put out fires and the other attachment helps spread seeds to encourage regrowth after a fire.

Thanks to Kidman Park Primary School for hosting and to our industry judges and guests, and to Channel 9 for covering the showcase.