Within the disaster response and research sectors, there is increasing recognition of the value of community-led initiatives that facilitate emergency management, risk reduction and community resilience. In contrast, the value of cultural approaches to disaster management and recovery is rarely acknowledged. The Māori disaster management response to the Christchurch earthquakes and subsequent urban recovery process constitutes an exemplar of best practice. During the emergency management phase, Māori risk management initiatives were collaborative, effective and shaped by kaupapa (cultural values), specifically the value, 'aroha nui ki te tangata' (extend love to all people). In this article, the potential value of Māori kaupapa-based technologies for shaping contextually relevant disaster management and risk reduction strategies is considered. The discussion draws from research findings arising from two projects conducted by the Joint Centre of Disaster Research in partnership with Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu (resident Māori tribe) that address Māori disaster–related concerns, including factors that facilitate community recovery. An overview of the Māori emergency response, including perceived hindrances, is provided as background. Drawing upon frameworks provided within Actor-Network Theory cultural technologies that facilitate community well-being and recovery are identified and the ways in which technologies were operationalised within the emergency context, outlined. With reference to the Hyogo Framework for Action the applicability of integrating Māori technologies into national civil defence emergency management policies is also discussed and recommendations are proposed for adapting and implementing these technologies as a component of integrated disaster risk reduction at the local, national and international levels

The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (2015) is a global strategy for addressing disaster risk and resilience that has been ratified by member countries of the United Nations. Its guiding principles emphasise building resilience through inter-sectoral collaboration, as well as partnerships that facilitate community empowerment and address underlying risk factors. Both public health and the emergency management sector face similar challenges related to developing and implementing strategies that involve structural change, facilitating community resilience and addressing individual risk factors. Familiarity with public health principles enables an understanding of the holistic approach to risk reduction that is outlined within the Sendai Framework. We present seven concepts that resonate with contemporary public health practice, namely: the social determinants of health; inequality and inequity; the inverse care law; community-based and community development approaches; hard to reach communities and services; the prevention paradox; and the inverse prevention law. These ideas from public health provide a useful conceptual base for the ”new” agenda in disaster risk management that underpins the 2015 Sendai Framework. The relevance of these ideas to disaster risk management and research is illustrated through drawing on the Sendai Framework, disaster literature and exemplars from the 2010–2011 earthquakes in Canterbury, New Zealand.

Drawing on Māori (Aotearoa-New Zealand), First Nations (Canada), and Navajo Nation (U.S.), case studies and practitioners’ experiences, this article addresses a gap in our understanding of the role of volunteers in emergencies and disasters in Indigenous communities. Enablers and challenges to effective volunteering in these Indigenous communities are discussed. Cultural enablers of volunteering include building capacity during non-emergency times, using all senses when volunteering, and supporting locally emergent psychosocial recovery institutions that are based on cultural understanding and trust. Resolving systemic barriers to volunteering would require institutional and organisational changes through governance, coordination and training. Practical recommendations for supporting volunteer management in Indigenous communities are made.