Dear Anglican,
I hope you have had an opportunity to enjoy time with family and friends, and refresh over Christmas and New Year. We have begun 2020, not as we would have wished, with unprecedented bushfires decimating many of our communities with the accompanying loss of life, including wildlife and the broader environment and livelihood impacts.
As a much-appreciated member of the Brotherhood of St Laurence (BSL) community, I know you share our sentiments for the most disadvantaged in our country as our hearts go out to the families and communities who have lost loved ones, and all those impacted by the fires, including some of our staff and volunteers.
It’s been inspiring and humbling to see the selfless, sustained courage of our firefighters and all first responders, as well as the spontaneous practical support many individuals and groups are giving.
Even though Brotherhood of St Laurence (BSL) is not a relief agency with specialist emergency response capabilities, we can play a number of important roles in the recovery phase.
This includes;
- providing support to those agencies on the ground, including our offer of assistance to the team at Anglicare Victoria who are responding in some affected areas,
- reaching out to local councils to determine how best we are able to support differing needs of the various impacted areas,
- offering emergency respite through our Aged Care facilities,
- working with local National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) / Early Childhood Early Intervention (ECEI) providers and the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA), preparing to support displaced NDIS / ECEI participants from Gippsland,
- directing offers of financial support to the Victorian Bushfire Appeal, and
- supporting our own staff and volunteers through this tragic period.
The dire predictions by experts of climate change both in terms of the immediate risks of this fire season and of the longer term, indicate an inevitable increase in extreme weather events. We know the change in climate will affect every Australian and many of its impacts, such as more frequent and intense heatwaves and bushfires, and are already being felt intensely by low-income households.
BSL has much expertise and experience in what it takes to support those most vulnerable in our communities. For the past decade, we have been working on understanding and reducing the impact of climate change on the most disadvantaged households and developing policy solutions to these challenges, and ensuring fair and ambitious climate change policy. We will leverage this knowledge to support longer term recovery efforts across Victoria, as well as contribute to shaping ongoing policy choices as a result of the tragedy we have experienced.
An example of how we actively address the challenges and mitigation of climate change is the work we are doing to support low-income households suffering from chronic health challenges through energy efficiency upgrades to their homes so as to protect them from weather impacts such as heatwaves.
If you wish to support the bushfire relief effort directly, we recommend visiting the Victorian Bushfire Appeal.
As a valued member of the BSL community, you may wish to support BSL’s broader work addressing climate change to serve the most disadvantaged in our community. You can do so by calling our friendly team on 03 9483 1301.
Thank you for your ongoing support of BSL. Without your support, we would not be able to deliver on our work to create an Australia free of poverty.
Regards,
Conny Lenneberg
Executive Director, Brotherhood of St Laurence