The flood in 2011 was very traumatic, but also an incredibly transformative experience for me,” explained Lydia, who is at the early stages of a career in disaster risk reduction.

“Looking back, I realised I was not empowered to make use of the networks and knowledge that I had as a teenager that was incredibly valuable. My concept of Youth Guardians would enable young people now, who may face a similar situation to what my friends and I faced, or who just want to better prepare their local community, to use their knowledge and experience to make a positive change in the world.