About Bushfire Stories
This community storytelling and oral history website has been established to provide a space for people to tell their own stories, in their own ways, about what bushfire means in their lives and places. We seek contributions from anyone with a story to tell, be it in words, pictures, film, or other media.
Our aim in establishing this space is to deepen public understanding about the diverse impacts and experiences of bushfire in Australia, including the many ways that individuals and communities have sought to respond to and recover from these events. In so doing, we hope to contribute to a fuller appreciation of the ongoing personal, cultural, economic, and political dimensions of bushfire, and to open up more creative and inclusive approaches to imagining and shaping bushfire-futures in this country.
To learn more about the stories we are collecting here, see our Call for Stories page.
Research Project
In addition to collecting and sharing community stories, this website forms the basis of a research project that aims to better understand the lived experience and significance of bushfires to people around Australia. The research team will analyse the stories submitted to this website in combination with other research with bushfire-affected communities, to explore how people understand, remember, and narrate their own bushfire experiences. For further information on this research, please see the Participant Information Sheet on the submissions page.
Co-ordination
Bushfire Stories is run from The Sydney Environment Institute and the School of Philosophical and Historical Inquiry at The University of Sydney. It is co-ordinated by Thom van Dooren, Scott Webster, Blanche Verlie (RMIT University), Ruth Barcan and Fiona Allon.
Funding
Funding for Bushfire Stories has been provided by The University of Sydney.
Social Media
To stay up to date with content on this website, please follow us on social media.
Inquiries
Please contact us via email at info@bushfirestories.org
Content warning — Please note that some of the stories on this website may contain material that is disturbing for some readers or that could cause distress or trigger traumatic memories. If you need help or just to talk to someone, confidential support is available from Lifeline. Call 13 11 14 or visit www.lifeline.org.au.
Bushfire Stories 