FMA is really excited to announce the 2026 winners of the Harold Sternbeck Medal and Young Floodplain Manager (YFM) Outstanding Presenter Award from the 2026 FMA National Conference in Gold Coast. Our congratulations to - Winner of the 2026 Harold Sternbeck Medal is Chrisy Clay from Rous County Council (NSW) for her presentation: ‘Beyond the ribbon cutting: lessons from a century of flood
mitigation on the Richmond River’.
- Winner of the 2026 YFM Outstanding Presenter Award is Katrina Smith (QLD) for her presentation: ‘It’s not you — it’s your damage curve’.
See below in the Flyer for more information about these prestigious awards, our highly commended winners and our presenters who were ranked very highly by the evaluation panel. Stormwater Victoria Annual Conference, Lorne, Victoria It’s been a great week catching up with our Stormwater Victoria colleagues at their annual
conference in Lorne, Victoria. As with many of our FMA Conferences it was a very rainy week with so many like-minded stormwater professionals generating like-minded energy all in the same place at the same time! |
We were truly energised at the start of the conference by Keynote Speaker, Lisa O’Neill, author of “Energy - Get it, Guard it, Give it”, followed by four concurrent technical streams covering very informative presentations on Policy, Planning and
Education, Collaboration, Technical Research and Innovation as well as Assets management and Life Cycles. There was a particularly interesting Panel Session entitled ‘AI in Stormwater: Risks, Rights & Real-World Value’. The panel explored how artificial intelligence is influencing stormwater modelling,
planning, design, asset management, and governance. It brought together a technology lawyer, a hydraulic modeller, a data security expert and a council/authority representative and examined the risks, rights and practical value of AI tools as they are becoming embedded in engineering workflows. The session aimed to demystify AI, clarify legal and professional responsibilities, and provide practical guidance for councils, consultants, and authorities considering or already using AI-driven tools. |
HAROLD STERNBECK MEDAL & YFM PRESENTER AWARDS |
The FMA hosts two prestigious competitions each year at the FMA Annual Conference to encourage excellence across all aspects of a conference presentation; the Harold Sternbeck Medal and the YFM Outstanding Presenter Award. In 2026, at the FMA National Conference in Gold Coast, there were around 110 presentations. The Harold Sternbeck Medal competition has been a FMA Conference tradition for many
years. |
The Harold Sternbeck Medal is awarded to the best paper presentation at the FMA Annual Conference in recognition of past President Harold’s contribution to the organisation. The Harold Sternbeck Medal is awarded in recognition of Harold Sternbeck's contribution to the FMA. Harold was a former Chairman of FMA and FMA’s first Life Member, and was a fierce negotiator on all things flood related, especially the politics of funding allocations. |
Since 2021, in addition to the Harold Sternbeck Medal, we also celebrate the Young Floodplain Manager (YFM) Outstanding Presenter Award. The FMA Young Floodplain Managers (YFM) network exists to represent, engage, and inspire young floodplain management practitioners across Australia and beyond, to share new ideas and engage in industry discussions. |
The winner of the 2026 Harold Sternbeck Medal is: Chrisy Clay, Rous County
Council (NSW) Beyond the ribbon cutting: lessons from a century of flood mitigation on the Richmond River. |
The winner of the 2026 YFM Outstanding Presenter Award is: Katrina Smith, Water Technology (QLD) It’s not you — it’s your damage curve |
Because the quality of presentations was so high once again, we are pleased to acknowledge the following highly commended awards: 2026 Harold Sternbeck Highly Commended Awards (in alphabetical order by name): - Richard Crowder, Jacobs (UK) — Flood AI for flood resilience — making every second and decision count.
- Juliette Murphy, FloodMapp (QLD) — Operational impact-based forecasting during a nocturnal flash flood in Texas: lessons for Australia
- Nicole Prentice, Prentice Advisory Group (QLD) — Planning for flood hazard — Effective
risk-informed decision making
2026 YFM Outstanding Presenter Highly Commended Award: - Tom Ward, KBR (NSW) — Urban flood
modelling: how building and rainfall distribution assumptions shape risk and design outcomes
In addition to the formal awards, we would also like to congratulate the following presenters, who were also ranked very highly by the evaluation panel (in alphabetical order by name): - Sharyn Westlake, Greater Wellington Regional Council (NZ) — Integrating Flood Resilience and Urban Development: Te Wai Takamori o Te Awa Kairangi Planning Lessons
- Michelle Ho, HARC (Qld) — A ready reckoner for
initial calculations of flooding under climate change
- Ainslie Frazer, NSW Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (NSW DCCEEW) — NSW Flood Risk Valley Studies: next generation flood information for a more resilient NSW
- Sina Akram, Melbourne Water (VIC) - Beyond Deterministic Uplifts: Navigating the Transition Toward Risk-Based Climate Guidance in ARR v4.2
- Emma Maratea, Rhelm (NSW) — Complexities of entrance management in ICOLLS with highly modified entrances and
highly engaged communities
- Jonathon Schacht & Thomas Wright, Haskoning (NSW) — Reconciling Bridge/Culvert Blockage Methodologies: Implications for Flood Modelling and Design
Once
again congratulations to all our winners, as well as all of the other 90+ presenters, for the great contributions they have made towards the success of the 2026 FMA National Conference. Finally, a big thank you always goes to the team of evaluators who attend as many presentations as they can and provide their review scores
during the three days of the conference. |
BEST POSTER PRESENTATIONS ANNOUNCEDThis year, there were around 60 poster presentations at the FMA National Conference. Poster presentations are presented as a
three minute talk during morning tea, afternoon tea and lunch. These presentations are judged as a ‘people’s choice’. FMA is delighted to announce 2 winners of the 2026 Best Poster Presentation: |
Joseph Camuso Northland Regional Council (NZ) Restoring the Natural Flow of the Waiharakeke River — “Te Mana o te Wai” |
Joyce Ting Catchment Simulation Solutions What’s the damage? Assessment of processing
assumptions in calculating tangible flood damages. |
FLOOD RESILIENCE MUST BE BUILT LONG BEFORE THE WATER ARRIVES
|
|
|
|
Natural Hazards Resilience Australia (NHRA) has released a report outlining what can be learned from the experiences of people affected by the 2022-2023 flooding in South Australia, Victoria and south-western New South Wales. The flood was among the most devastating natural hazards in recent history, causing widespread destruction and significantly impacting communities. The flooding manifested in two distinct patterns:
slower-onset riverine flooding characterised by gradual water level rises over weeks that predominantly affected SA, and rapid-onset flooding where intense rainfall led to much faster water level rises within a few days and severe impacts in Victoria and NSW. The research was conducted by NHRA in
partnership with RMIT University, Macquarie University and Monash University, as well as South Australian SES, Victoria SES and NSW SES. Lead researcher ARC Future Fellow and Principal Research Fellow Dr Erica Kuligowski said “This project shows that floods are not just environmental
events—they are deeply social experiences, shaped by history, culture, communication and trust. “By bringing together evidence from three states and diverse communities, we were able to see how the same flood can be lived in profoundly different ways, and why a one‑size‑fits‑all approach to
disaster management simply doesn’t work.”
|
|
AUDIT OFFICE OF NSW REVIEWS RESILIENT HOMES & LANDS PROGRAMS
|
|
|
|
The Audit Office of NSW has released the report of its audit into administration of the Resilient Homes Program (RHP) and Resilient Lands Program (RLP). The audit assessed whether the NSW Reconstruction Authority is effectively administering the RHP and the RLP to meet the programs’ objectives. The programs were implemented in response to the 2022 floods across northern NSW. The RHP is an $880 million program that aims to provide financial assistance to homeowners to improve the flood resilience through voluntary buybacks and by implementing measures to increase the resilience of homes. The RLP is a $100 million program that aims to speed up the delivery of new land and housing in the Northern Rivers to provide flood-affected residents with housing options to support their relocation, and to improve the resilience of the region. The report details 5 key findings: - The Resilient Homes and Resilient Lands Programs were not effectively planned
- The Reconstruction Authority is prioritising Resilient Homes Program funding based on risk
- The Reconstruction Authority has reallocated funding from buybacks to increase the number of resilient measures
- There have been persistent delays in the Resilient Homes Program
- The Reconstruction Authority has not effectively administered the Resilient Lands Program.
The report makes 5
recommendations for the Reconstruction Authority, including identifying opportunities to accelerate delivery of the RLP, improve planning for future disaster recovery and ensure the appropriate use of bought-back land. In responding to the audit, Reconstruction Authority Chief Executive Officer
Kate Fitzpatrick said she welcomed and accepted in full the findings and recommendations, and advised that work is underway against all recommendations. “The RA remains committed to building resilience in communities through its disaster mitigation, adaptation, preparedness and recovery functions.
Our role in the delivery of programs such as RHP and RLP, on behalf of the NSW Government, remains a critical element of this commitment.”
|
|
INDUSTRY NEWSUpdates, consultations, research and events from across the flood, stormwater and resilience sectors. |
|
|
SA FLOOD HAZARD CODE AMENDMENT CONSULTATIONThe South Australian Planning Commission has released a draft State-Wide Flood Hazard Code Amendment for public consultation. Commission Chair Craig Holden advised that the proposed updated flood hazard overlay mapping utilises modelling of flood event scenarios for the year 2050, factoring in projected climate conditions and development growth scenarios to protect new homes from flooding now and in the future. The proposed changes to the policies of the flood hazard overlays seek to update terminology to provide greater consistency and clarity in the assessment of development and to achieve alignment with national natural hazard mitigation guidance, including guidance from the Australian Institute for Disaster Resilience. The draft mapping proposes to remove flood related planning requirements from more than 280,000 properties where precautionary measures are no longer considered necessary, saving time and costs for developing in these areas. |
NATURE VALUES AND DISASTER RISK REDUCTION WEBINARThe Australian Institute for Disaster Resilience will host a webinar exploring the role of nature‑based solutions in disaster risk reduction, and
the importance of planning for natural values in response and recovery. The session will focus on the value of nature, the impacts of extreme weather on natural systems, and how nature‑based approaches can help reduce risk while delivering social, environmental, and economic co‑benefits.
Presenters: Dr Bek Christensen, Knowledge Broker, NRM Regions Australia; Sarah Hoyal Nature-based Solutions Lead, NRM Regions Australia; Dr Wendy Telfer, Nature Partnerships and Finance Lead, Hills and Fleurieu Landscape
Board. ➡️ More information: www.aidr.org.au/events/51453?locationId=56628 |
|
Women-led Stormwater Projects Showcased at LGWA Awards Contributed by Blacktown City
Council |
We were proud to host the Local Government Women’s Association Awards on Friday 27 March at The Colebee, Nurragingy Reserve. The event welcomed representatives from councils across New South Wales to celebrate the achievements, leadership and contributions of women in local government. A highlight of the day was the work led by our women‑led team to protect the health of local waterways. Our team showcased several projects funded through the Stormwater Management Service
Charge. |
These included a green roof trial, which explores ways to cool urban spaces while improving stormwater management, and the Blacktown Showground stormwater harvesting scheme, which captures and reuses water to support more sustainable water use. The team also engaged attendees with an interactive stormwater model, demonstrating how everyday actions can affect local waterways. |
|
|
|
19 - 20 August 2026 Australian Disaster Resilience Conference Melbourne, VIC ➡️ More Information |
FROM OUR NZ CORRESPONDENT |
Our New Zealand Resilient River Communities colleagues are holding the following upcoming webinars: |
|
9 June, 10:00am AEST Monitoring and modelling the wood regime in rivers Large wood, comprising fallen trees, trunks, and branches, is crucial to fluvial ecosystems. However, in high-energy environment the transport of wood may worsen flood hazards by creating blockages in channels or bridges. This presentation will detail
findings from a project supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation, employing field observations, numerical modeling, fingerprinting techniques, and machine learning to investigate large wood dynamics across various spatial and temporal scales. |
3 July, 12:00pm AEST Lessons learned from 21 nature-based solutions for flood mitigation feasibility studies Fifteen councils have undertaken 21 feasibility studies on nature-based solutions (NbS) for flood mitigation. This webinar will cover a review of the projects'
final reports, including an overview of the assessment approaches and methodologies, stakeholder engagement, and key findings from the studies on effectiveness for flood mitigation. |
Interested in Presenting? If any FMA colleagues are to keen present in the NZ Resilient Rivers Webinar
Series please contact: Rachael Armstrong | Hawke's Bay Regional Council | [email protected] |
|
|
STAY CONNECTED WITH FMAVisit our website, access Member resources, join the Membership or get in touch. |
|
|
