Considerable expense and resources have been dedicated to the analysis, maintenance, and security of the critical infrastructures. However, additional effort should be expended in the consideration of humans as a critical infrastructure. Human interpersonal networks, intelligence, capacity for innovation, and characteristics as a resilient complex system are only a few examples of how humans are not only an integral component of the traditional infrastructures, but also are infrastructures in and of themselves.One of the implications of viewing humans as a critical infrastructure is a need to ensure their security. Public-private partnerships and community level efforts to foster individual and community resiliency offer tangible measures of ensuring the security of this overlooked critical infrastructure.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the significance of psychological resiliency for evacuated disaster survivors and the possible implementation of a concept known as homes away from home aimed at fostering such resiliency.Design/methodology/approachTo address the topic of resiliency in evacuated disaster survivors, first an evacuation scenario is explored. The scenario is followed by a discussion of disaster psychology, resiliency, and a development of the homes away from home concept.FindingsThe development of an evacuated disaster survivor's individual and community resiliency shows promise as an effective means of mitigating the psychological damage of a disaster or terrorist attack. The implementation of the homes away from home concept, designed to foster such resiliency in emergency shelters could be effective.Practical implicationsIncorporating accommodations for the development of individual and community psychological resiliency in emergency shelters in emergency operations plans could be more tangible with the homes concept. A shift in sheltering practices is necessary to meet not only the basic needs of survivors but higher needs as well.Originality/valueThe homes away from home concept is new as there are few if any models for emergency shelters that specifically offer direction to local jurisdictions to develop individual and community resiliency.

In a rapidly changing environment where graduate teachers are expected to have 21 st century skills and knowledge, it is critical that teacher educators keep up with their own professional development. One way to do this is through engagement with professional development activities provided centrally by academic development units within universities where the teacher educators work. Traditionally, this has involved attending formal, stand-alone professional development sessions that reflect a learning agenda set by the central academic development unit in response to the university's strategic priorities. However, the pace of change in the 21 st century, coupled with the rise of the 'smart worker' (Hart, 2015) who takes charge of their own professional learning, are challenging this model, requiring academic units to rethink their roles and activities. This paper explores the challenges, tensions and opportunities presented by this situation for one such academic unit at a northern Australia university. It argues for the need to develop a new model of academic development that nurtures opportunities for teacher educators and other academic staff to build on their professional networks and enables them to engage in professional learning in multiple ways that suit their needs at different times.