New guidance empowers councils to lead risk conversations
A new resource is now available to help councils and other agencies lead meaningful conversations with communities about natural hazard and climate change risk tolerance.
Developed by the Let’s Talk About Risk (LTAR) team and funded by the Natural Hazards Commission Toka Tū Ake (NHC), the guidance supports practitioners in designing and delivering engagement processes that reflect what matters most to people.
Sarah-Jayne McCurrach, Head of Risk Reduction at NHC, says the guidance fills a critical gap.
“We funded this work because understanding public perspectives on risk is essential to making good decisions. Technical assessments alone don’t tell us what people are willing to live with or what they value most. This guidance helps council officials and others lead conversations that surface those insights and build trust.”
LTAR is a small interdisciplinary group working to improve New Zealand’s public engagement around natural hazard and climate risk. LTAR’s Dr Charlotte Brown says, “We kept hearing from practitioners and policy makers that there wasn’t anything out there to help with assessing risk tolerance. This resource starts to fill that gap, shaped by their experiences and examples from across the motu.”
The guidance was developed through extensive consultation with engagement specialists, council hazard planners, policy advisors, elected representatives, and community members.
It draws on interviews, structured discussion groups, and in-depth case studies from across New Zealand, including Wharekawa Coast on the Firth of Thames, Amberley Beach in Hurunui, and Gorge Road in Queenstown. These real-world examples illustrate how risk tolerance conversations can be designed to suit different contexts—from immediate hazard response to long-term climate adaptation planning.
The document offers practical tools, methods, and design principles for eliciting public views on risk tolerance and includes tailored advice for both elected officials and communities.
Download the guidance through ResOrgs website(external link).