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There’s a flood heading towards you. What three things would you take, if you had to leave right now?

This is the question NSW State Emergency Service and University of New England want you to answer: “what are your three things?"

UNE Staff and Students in consultation with NSW SES have created multi-media digital campaign #3things promoting flood awareness and safety messages.

In a first for the NSW SES the #3things campaign comes from a formal agreement with UNE inked in 2018. The working partnership is a bold departure for NSW SES. It forms an integral part of Volunteering ReImaged - to increase NSW SES’s volunteer base using a wider range of community skills and resources.

NSW SES Commissioner Kyle Stewart says the arrangement is ground breaking and has wide ranging benefits for communities across the state. Both in terms of delivering important flood safety messages and growing NSW SES’s volunteer numbers.

“The #3things campaign starts an important conversation about the practical things communities can do when preparing for flood.

“NSW SES sees the UNE partnership and this campaign as critical in delivering ongoing safety messages while highlighting the risk and dangers around flooding.

“It’s also a great result for NSW SES’s Volunteering Reimagined - our new initiative to recruit volunteers with specific skills and expertise to increase NSW SES capability,” says Commissioner Stewart.

UNE Vice-Chancellor and CEO, Professor Annabelle Duncan, said the #3things campaign, was the outcome of much discussion between enthusiastic UNE staff and students, and NSW SES staff and volunteers.

“Not only does the collaboration offer our students direct pathways into community volunteering, it also offers our academic staff new research pathways,” Prof. Duncan said.

“I’m looking forward to building on our relationship with NSW SES and on the links it has fostered.”

 #3things is a comprehensive suite of social media resources which can be deployed across multiple channels and includes an interactive online activity.

The flood safety campaign has been completed by students and staff from UNE in a volunteer capacity working closely with members from NSW SES Western Zone.

The partnership is set to continue following a successful grant application with Emergency Volunteer Support Scheme.

There are 9,500 skilled and trained NSW State Emergency Service Volunteers are on-hand 24 hours a day, seven days a week keeping nearly eight million people safe in times of disaster. In the past year, our volunteers have responded to 35,000 requests for assistance in times of flood, storm and other emergencies. Learn more about when to call