Perspective from Pacific Partnership 2025
Tracks
Coolangatta Room
| Monday, July 27, 2026 |
| 1:20 PM - 1:50 PM |
| Coolangatta Room |
Overview
Emily Chapman, ADF
Details
Three Key Learnings
1. Empowering local leadership, voices and knowledge during disaster response through preparedness activities
2. How civil-military interaction in our region supports preparation and builds trust and relationships, which are critical for any disaster response
3. We need to collectively prepare in our region because we face both increasing risk and severity of natural hazards
Speaker
Dr Emily Chapman
Research Fellow
Adf
Perspective from Pacific Partnership 2025
Abstract
Pacific Partnership is undertaken annually by the United States (US) Navy with host and partners in the Indo-Pacific region as part of their humanitarian assistance and disaster response mission. Its purpose is to develop regional disaster response capabilities, as well as enhance security and stability in the region through building relationships.
This presentation will provide insights from Pacific Partnership 2025 where I participated in an oil spill response workshop in Papua New Guinea. It will cover integration of international actors during preparedness and response to support local leadership and local knowledge, civil-military interaction and working together, and learning from experience for future responses.
The presentation will also draw on literature on civil-military interaction to demonstrate the necessity of actors collaborating and building trust before a disaster response, and how militaries contribute preparedness and response through their regional engagement activities. Lastly, it will reflect on disaster preparedness and response challenges in our region and how activities like Pacific Partnership contribute to a resilient region.
Please note that this presentation acknowledges Indigenous Peoples and their voice in disaster preparedness and response. The presentation is a personal reflection of experience, and this will be reflected in the contents.
This presentation will provide insights from Pacific Partnership 2025 where I participated in an oil spill response workshop in Papua New Guinea. It will cover integration of international actors during preparedness and response to support local leadership and local knowledge, civil-military interaction and working together, and learning from experience for future responses.
The presentation will also draw on literature on civil-military interaction to demonstrate the necessity of actors collaborating and building trust before a disaster response, and how militaries contribute preparedness and response through their regional engagement activities. Lastly, it will reflect on disaster preparedness and response challenges in our region and how activities like Pacific Partnership contribute to a resilient region.
Please note that this presentation acknowledges Indigenous Peoples and their voice in disaster preparedness and response. The presentation is a personal reflection of experience, and this will be reflected in the contents.
Biography
Dr Emily Chapman has over 15 years of research and operational experience with Defence, including as a Reserve Air Force Operations Officer with deployments to the Philippines and Fiji for disaster relief operations. Emily completed her PhD on civil-military interaction during Australian responses to overseas natural hazards. She continues to be active in her research community, focusing on civil-military interaction and interagency coordination in disaster response settings.
In 2025, she participated in Pacific Partnership, working alongside partners from Papua New Guinea, Australia and the United States during an oil spill workshop to contribute to regional preparedness and collaboration.
