Children helping build disaster-ready communities through Kia Rite Get Ready!
As Aotearoa New Zealand marks International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction today, Save the Children is calling for children to be placed at the centre of emergency planning and preparedness efforts, warning that young people are often among the most affected when emergencies strike, yet their needs and voices are frequently overlooked.
From floods and storms to earthquakes and tsunami, children experience natural hazards differently to adults. While they are among the most vulnerable during emergencies, they also play an important role in helping families and communities prepare, recover and build resilience. Increasingly severe weather events linked to climate change are making child-focused preparedness more important than ever.
Save the Children's Programmes and Advocacy Director, Jacqui Southey, says children should be seen as active participants in emergency preparedness.
"Children have a right to be safe, informed and prepared. When we involve children in emergency preparedness in ways that are appropriate for their age, we see them build confidence, reduce fear and become active participants in keeping themselves, their whānau and their communities safe. It is essential we include preschool children in this process."
Save the Children's Kia Rite Get Ready! programme, funded by QBE, is putting this approach into action by working with early childhood education centres in Wellington, Nelson-Marlborough and now Hawke's Bay to help tamariki, educators and whānau build practical preparedness skills.
Delivered by our partner Tātai Aho Rau Core Education, the programme helps staff in early childhood centres teach young children and their whānau how to prepare for emergencies. Each child receives a Go-Bag for essential supplies, whānau receive tools to make an emergency plan, and educators learn how to create safe, child-friendly spaces during and after an emergency.
Recent programme evaluation findings showed participating centres reported increased confidence in emergency preparedness with stronger emergency plans, more meaningful drills and better communication systems. Children were actively taking preparedness messages home, families received Go-Bags to pack with essentials and learned about creating emergency plans and having important conversations with their young children on how to stay safe during emergencies.
One educator reported that "children are becoming the experts", while another described children teaching their families about emergency preparedness. Additionally, several ECE centres have reached out to their local community to engage them in better emergency preparedness planning.
To date in 2026, the programme has reached 20 early childhood education centres, delivered more than 30 training sessions, trained more than 70 educators, engaged 867 children and reached more than 800 whānau with preparedness resources and toolkits.
Research from the programme shows emergency preparedness has evolved from a centre-based activity into a shared responsibility involving children, whānau, educators and wider communities. Strong partnerships have also been developed with emergency services, local councils and community organisations, strengthening local resilience.
"Climate change is increasing the frequency and severity of many disasters around the world, including here in Aotearoa New Zealand," says Ms Southey.
"The best time to prepare for an emergency is before it happens. Through Kia Rite, we're helping children feel confident rather than fearful, while building practical readiness that can make a real difference when disasters occur. We know that when families are well prepared, they can respond and recover much more effectively, reducing the impact while increasing resilience."
QBE Pacific CEO and Managing Director Jonathan Groves says preparedness plays a vital role in strengthening community resilience.
"We’re proud to support Save the Children's Kia Rite Get Ready! programme. By helping children, families and educators build practical preparedness skills, we can strengthen resilience at a community level and help ensure people are better prepared for future emergencies."
International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction is observed annually on 13 October and promotes a global culture of disaster prevention, mitigation and preparedness.