RRANZ is pleased to announce Brandy Alger as the recipient of the David Johnston Memorial Scholarship for 2026.
The scholarship honours the legacy of the late Professor David Johnston, Distinguished Professor at Massey University and a founding member of RRANZ, whose contribution to emergency management capability development in Aotearoa New Zealand spanned decades. It provides full fee coverage for RRANZ Leadership Parts One and Two, plus a travel allowance for Part Two, specifically for individuals and organisations for whom funding barriers would otherwise put this professional development out of reach.
The response to the scholarship's second year exceeded expectations. RRANZ received applications from across the sector - volunteers, council staff, consultants, students and professionals working in roles spanning welfare, incident management, logistics and response coordination, many contributing significant unpaid time to their communities. Selecting a single recipient from such a strong field was genuinely difficult, and RRANZ would have loved to fund every applicant who applied.
“My passion for emergency management leadership has always been rooted in service to community, a value David Johnston, my PhD supervisor and mentor, modelled throughout his life.
This scholarship means I can honour his legacy by growing as a leader in emergency management and using what I learn to serve and strengthen the communities I work alongside.”
Brandy Alger
PhD Candidate, University of Canterbury
Disaster Welfare Support Team, New Zealand Red Cross
Christchurch Civil Defence Emergency Support Team
Brandy Alger is a PhD candidate at the University of Canterbury studying how community-led initiatives may increase preparedness for natural hazards. She is also a long-serving volunteer within emergency response, where she has spent over a decade doing outreach, psychological first aid and needs assessment with the New Zealand Red Cross Disaster Welfare Support Team and the Christchurch Civil Defence Emergency Support Team. During the COVID-19 response, she served as 2IC to the Welfare Manager in the Canterbury Group Emergency Operations Centre. She also sits on the Red Cross Canterbury Area Committee and is a committee member of the Australasian Women in Emergencies Network.
For Brandy, the scholarship carries particular significance: Professor Johnston was one of her PhD supervisors. In her application, she described his passing as a profound loss, both personally and for the field he dedicated his career to building, and spoke of being honoured to carry his legacy forward through the scholarship named in his memory.
Brandy plans to use the RRANZ Leadership Programme to build structured leadership development alongside her practical experience, with a particular focus on governance, strategic decision-making and navigating the multi-agency environment at a senior level - capability she intends to put directly to work across her research, committee roles and volunteer networks. Ultimately, her goal is to build community-led preparedness that reaches and reflects populations often underserved by mainstream emergency management.
Congratulations, Brandy - RRANZ looks forward to supporting your leadership journey.
RRANZ has established an annual scholarship honouring the legacy of David Johnston, Distinguished Professor at Massey University and founding member of RRANZ, following his sudden passing in early 2025. Professor Johnston's dedication to emergency management capability development continues through this initiative.
This scholarship aims to create equitable access to growth opportunities that would otherwise remain out of reach due to funding constraints. Priority will be given to applicants who are not from local or central government agencies. The scholarship recognises that many other organisations play vital roles in emergency management but often lack dedicated funding for professional development. This initiative honours Professor Johnston’s commitment to building capability across the entire emergency management sector.
Scholarship Benefits
- Full fee coverage for both RRANZ Leadership Part One and Part Two programmes
- $1,000 travel allowance for Part Two attendance
Eligibility Requirements
Successful applicants must meet the standard RRANZ leadership course pre-requisites:
- A solid understanding of CIMS. This can be either CIMS unit standards (or equivalent) or sufficient work experience to demonstrate this understanding.
- Relevant experience in emergency response, recovery, or other leadership roles. We welcome leaders from both the private and public sectors who hold designated emergency management roles but do not classify themselves as experienced.
If you have any further questions, get in touch to have a chat.