Barbara Ryan

Barbara Ryan is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Southern Queensland, specializing in Disaster Communications, Community Engagement, and Public Relations. With over 35 years of experience in PR practice and teaching, she is a Fellow of the Public Relations Institute of Australia (PRIA) and Chair of Emergency Media and Public Affairs. Her research focuses on disaster information seeking, crisis communication, and building community resilience through participative engagement models.

• Education:
  • PhD (RMIT University)
  • Master of Professional Communication (University of Southern Queensland)
  • Graduate Certificate in Tertiary Teaching and Learning (University of Southern Queensland)
  • BA (Mitchell College of Advanced Education)

Her recent work includes the 2022 Community Experiences of Eastern Australia Floods project funded by Natural Hazards Research Australia, building on earlier research like the 2020 Bushfire Preparedness Study and the 2018 National Community Engagement Model. She teaches courses in Disaster Communication, Crisis Communication, and Campaign Development, with a focus on digital media analytics.

Scientific Awards:

• Fellow of the Public Relations Institute of Australia (PRIA)
• Founding Member and Chair, Emergency Media and Public Affairs
• Coordinator, USQ/ANU Fulbright Scholarship (2013)

As a practitioner, she combines academic work with real-world consulting in emergency communications, local government reputation management, and community-driven climate action. Her research supervision spans Communication and Media Studies, Disaster and Emergency Management, and Strategic Communication.