Jessie H.

Experience

• 

  Australian Red Cross

  Jun 2006 - Oct 2009

  Responsible for the state-wide management and coordination of the disaster preparedness community education and disaster risk reduction project. Contributed to the national development of related resources. Key achievements:- Facilitated training and provided day to day and activation management of volunteers across NSW- Developed locally tailored training program for the disaster information management system NRIS (National Registration and Inquiry System)- Took on senior roles within the Incident Management Team for various activations including the 2009 response to massive bushfires in Victoria that killed over 170 people and destroyed 2000 homes- Lead community consultation on the development of disaster preparedness resources Show less

  • Emergency Services Officer

    Nov 2007 - Oct 2009

  • Newly Arrived Youth Program Coordinator

    Jan 2007 - Nov 2007

  • EnergyAustralia Red Cross Youth Challenge Coordinator

    Jun 2006 - Jan 2007
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  Bangladesh Disaster Preparedness Centre

  Nov 2009 - Oct 2010

  Disaster Management Project Officer

  Volunteer position in Bangladesh with a capacity development focus on local staff to increase personal and organizational knowledge and skills levels. Working in a challenging cross-cultural environment providing high level program support to staff working on a broad range of disaster risk reduction projects with diverse communities in partnership with domestic and international NGO’s. Key achievements:- Researched and developed presentations, successful funding applications, reports and information and communication materials- Developed and implemented administrative and human resources tools - Developed training materials for staff as required in Microsoft office programs Show less

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  Centre for Eye Health

  Mar 2011 - Apr 2012

  Referrer Services Coordinator

  Partnership management role developing educational and support services for optometrists and ophthalmologists that refer to the CentreKey achievements:- Coordinated monthly continuing professional development events for qualified optometrists- Integrated new technologies into educational program- Collected and analysed evaluation data and implemented identified areas for change

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  Forced Migration Research Network (previously Centre for Refugee Research)

  Apr 2012 - Aug 2012

  Intern

  As an intern, I attended the June 2012 UNHCR Standing Committee and July 2012 UNHCR Annual NGO Consultations in Geneva, Switzerland along with supporting work completed in Sydney.The Centre is an interdisciplinary research and advocacy organization, hosted by the School of Social Sciences within the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences at the University of New South Wales. The internship consisted of three main components; representing the Centre and the UNHCR Standing Committee and the Annual NGO Consultations held in Geneva in June and July 2012 along with the production of a discussion paper on climate induced displacement that was used by the Centre in their related advocacy work. Show less

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  Australian Red Cross

  Apr 2012 - Sept 2018

  Australian Red Cross representative in one of the youngest countries in the world. Timor-Leste is ranked 133 out of 188 countries on the Human Development Index. Responsible for the in-country coordination of support for Australian Red Cross funded development programs in Timor-Leste. Coordinate consortium of funding from IFRC and the New Zealand, Korean, British and Australian Red Cross societies for Timor-Leste Red Cross’ (CVTL) flagship integrated program. Key achievements:- Coordinating capacity development for CVTL counterparts including livelihood program review and development of in-house monitoring and evaluation capacity focusing on baseline surveys, enumerator training and use of RAMP technology to facilitate data collection and analysis- Developing strong relationships with key stakeholders internally (multiple Red Cross national societies and CVTL management) and externally (Australian Government and numerous International NGOs). Facilitated new partnerships for CVTL including a menstrual hygiene collaboration with Marie Stopes International - Increasing social media presence and promotion of CVTL programs to donors- Seconded to facilitate in-country design of Disaster Risk Reduction program for Papua New Guinea Red Cross in March 2017 Show less Responsible for the strategic management and coordination of recovery programs across NSW and the ACT. Key achievements:- Spokesperson for Australian Red Cross at a range of forums including conferences with various levels of government, emergency service agencies, community service organisations and community members. - Managed 1.5 yearlong external evaluation of the community recovery program in a disaster impacted community- Developed relationships with a wide range of stakeholders to work collaboratively on disaster risk reduction and community recovery programs- Integrated RAMP data collection technology into community outreach program to facilitate collection and analysis of data from impacted community to identify recovery needs- Managed remotely located staff directing them to implement community recovery and disaster risk reduction activities- Led the Red Cross response to siege in a Sydney café and subsequent community response- Seconded by NSW State Government to develop website content on disaster risk reduction for civil society organisations- Recipient Highly Commended NSW Resilient Australia Awards in 2015 and 2016 Show less Team Leader responsible for the management and coordination of disaster risk reduction programs across NSW and the ACT. Coordination of local Red Cross emergency management programs and involvement including the development and maintenance of relationships with key government and community services stakeholders.Key achievements:- Designed and implemented award winning disaster risk reduction program for civil society organisations (Winner of NSW and National Resilient Australia Awards in 2014)- Developed and facilitated disaster risk reduction workshops for civil society organisations involving government and emergency services agencies- Represented Australian Red Cross on a range of emergency management committees with government and other stakeholders - Represented Australian Red Cross on Australian Council for International Development (ACFID) Disaster Risk Reduction working group and at a meeting with the Head of UNISDR. - Incident Commander for response to 2013 Bushfires west of Sydney Show less

  • Program Lead (Timor-Leste)

    Jan 2016 - Sept 2018

  • NSW & ACT Recovery Coordinator

    Dec 2013 - Jan 2016

  • A/g NSW & ACT Recovery Coordinator

    Nov 2013 - Dec 2013

  • Senior Emergency Services Officer (Preparedness Team Leader)

    Dec 2012 - Dec 2013

  • Emergency Services Project Officer

    Apr 2012 - Dec 2012
• 

  British Red Cross

  Oct 2018 - Oct 2019

  Disaster Resilience Programme Manager

  Programme Manager for large DFID funded Urban Resilience Programme in Nepal. Primary focus on building the capacity of my counterparts in Nepal Red Cross Society to implement and manage the programme that they deliver in seven municipalities across Nepal.

• 

  Australian Red Cross

  Dec 2019 - Apr 2021

  NSW Recovery and Preparedness Lead

  Responsible for the design and implementation of the bushfire recovery program for communities in NSW impacted by the Black Summer fires. Lead a team of 10 staff working in partnership with impacted communities, government agencies, non-for-profit organisations, and volunteers to support the psychosocial needs of bushfire impacted communities as they recovery and prepare for future disasters.

• 

  International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies - IFRC

  Oct 2020 - Jan 2021

  Interim DRM Delegate (Myanmar)

  Provide technical and program management support to Myanmar Red Cross Society and ensure that key requirements and milestones are met. Complete donor and workshop reports to a high standard.

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  Department of Regional NSW

  May 2021 - Aug 2023

  • Senior Evaluation Advisor

    Dec 2022 - Aug 2023

  • Advisor, Program Evaluation

    May 2021 - Dec 2022
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  National Emergency Management Agency

  Aug 2023 - now

  Assistant Director