Simtable for Community Empowerment

The Simtables for Community Empowerment project provides a state-of-the-art tool to engage communities in localised disaster risk reduction workshops.

The Simtable was purchased with grant funds from the NSW Government’s Bushfire Community Recovery and Resilience Fund (BCRRF) for the local government areas that were disaster declared in the 2019-20 Black Summer bushfires.

The project aims to improve the capacity of communities across the Mid North Coast to plan and respond to disasters, particularly our vulnerable populations.

What are Simtables?

The Simtable is a sophisticated digital sand table that displays high quality models of natural hazards such as bushfires.

The technology uses a projector to overlay hazard projections over local mapping and terrain in 3D. The system models fire behaviour based on geophysical and meteorological conditions to demonstrate how fire might move through the landscape, and what impact it may have on the built environment.

It provides local communities with a highly realistic demonstration of how their properties and communities may be affected.

How is the Simtable used?

The Simtable has been used in place-based community engagement sessions in the local government areas of Port Macquarie Hastings, Kempsey, Nambucca, Bellingen, Coffs Harbour and the Clarence Valley to build resilience and preparedness for extreme weather events. Workshops have provided over 1000 attendees with a deep understanding of their risks, strengthen community connections and enable the development of tailored and detailed response plans.

To find out more information or to find out how you can get involved, contact Linda Villy - Project Officer (Simtable) on 0498 172 892 or at li nda.villy @mncjo.nsw.gov.au