<p>This research focuses on the role of women leadership and involvement in disaster preparedness and disaster resilience during the eruption of Mount Semeru in Lumajang Regency, East Java Province. Research on women and disaster in Indonesia continues understudied, instead the role of women and their leadership in disaster preparedness are significant Since women and children are more vulnerable and a high risk of dying than men during the disaster, so it becomes crucial to study the involvement and the role of women’s leadership in disaster preparedness and mitigation processes. Applying quantitative and qualitative methods, this research interviewed a hundred local women, including women’s leaders, cadres, authoritative figures, and residents of villages surrounding the area of Mount Semeru eruption. The result of this research suggests that enhancing the involvement of women in disaster related decision-making, empowering women’s position as community leaders, providing equal access to work, equal legal rights, as well as protection from violence during disaster and increased women’s mobility to seek information and build network are critical factors raised by the communities and need to be developed further by the government. Indeed, the government and agencies related to disaster management have initiated and developed various programs to prepare women for disaster resilience, however, the quantitative indicators to measure the positive progress of various programs implementation for women in the areas studied are lacking. Some active village women were aware of their significant role in disaster preparedness, yet, women expressed that their involvements so far have remained marginalised, less empowered, and positioned as unimportant due to the patriarchal socio-cultural tradition that becomes the mainstay barrier for women to actively participate in any communication forum related to community resilience program in the village. While policies recognise the importance of women’s participation in disaster management and programs have been initiated and implemented, the practical reality shows women’s involvement in decision-making process related to Mount Semeru disaster management remains limited due to socio-cultural barrier, and it continues the gap to prioritise saving women’s and children’ lives during the volcano eruption.</p>