In Case of Emergency, Read This Blog

In Case Of Emergency, Read Blog

A Citizen’s Eye View of Public Preparedness

As Nation Marks 9/11 Anniversary, 20 Ideas To Improve Citizen Preparedness & Engagement

September 13th, 2010 · 3 Comments

As the U.S. marks the ninth anniversary of 9/11, I wanted to post some ideas that I think would help raise citizen preparedness and engagement. The recommendations come from discussions that I have had with people involved in all aspects of the issue, my own experiences as a parent and CERT member in New York [...]

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Tags: Business Preparedness · CERT · City Preparedness · Congress · County Preparedness · Cyber Security · Department of Homeland Security · Federal Emergency Management Administration · Fire Safety · Government Education Programs · Media · Non-Profit Organizations · Preparedness 2.0 · Preparedness Ideas · Preparedness Incentives · Preparedness Models · Preparedness and Business · Risk Communications · See Something/Terrorism Tips · State Preparedness · Volunteer Opportunities

On 9/11 Anniv., Napolitano Looks To Field Bigger “Hometown Security” Team “Whether You Are…A Businessman, A Student, Or Stay-At-Home-Parent” To Address “Even More Dynamic” Threats, But Warns “We Can’t Seal Our Country Under A Glass Dome”; Suggests Return To Civil Defense Tradition

September 11th, 2010 · 2 Comments

U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano travelled to the New York City’s Emergency Operations Center in downtown Brooklyn yesterday to make a major speech to local first responders on the eve of the ninth anniversary of 9/11. I was asked by the City’s Office of Emergency Management to represent the Community Emergency Response Team [...]

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Tags: See Something/Terrorism Tips

Lessons For Building Disaster Resilience In New Orleans & The Rest Of “A Turbulent Planet”

August 15th, 2010 · No Comments

Andrew Revkin’s terrific DotEarth blog has two interesting posts this week with contributions from two experts on disasters and resilience.
1) In “Lessons In Resilience From New Orleans,” Robert Kates, a scholar studying human development patterns, offered some lessons on building resilient communities derived from the history of New Orleans. The lessons are:
The United States is vulnerable [...]

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Tags: Preparedness Interviews · Preparedness Lessons

New Report — “Community Resilience: A Function Of Resources And Adaptability”

June 27th, 2010 · 2 Comments

The Recovery Diva brought my attention to a new report, “Community Resilience: A Function Of Resources And Adaptability” recently published by the Project on Resilience & Security at Syracuse University’s Institute for National Security & Counter Terrorism. The executive summary:
This white paper is intended for people who must help communities prepare for surprises. It assumes [...]

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Tags: Preparedness Reports

Center For Biosecurity’s “Resilient American Communities” Report Offers Ideas For Improving Local Public Preparedness

May 21st, 2010 · No Comments

In December of  2009, the Center for Biosecurity of UPMC held a conference in Washington, D.C., “Resilient American Communities: Progress In Practice And In Policy”. The aim was “to apply state-of-the-art knowledge of resilience to the design of federal policies that will strengthen local communities and their environments to withstand disasters, epidemics, and terrorism.”
Co-sponsors included [...]

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Tags: Preparedness Events · Preparedness Ideas

FEMA Official Says Citizen Preparedness Numbers Are “Very Concerning”; Discusses Efforts To Strengthen Community Resilience

May 13th, 2010 · 7 Comments

Speaking at the Center For National Policy recently, Timothy Manning, FEMA Deputy Administrator for Protection & National Preparedness, said that the current statistics on citizen readiness “very concerning and frankly kind of frightening,” and he spoke about some of the agency’s efforts to strengthen the nation’s resilience to disasters.
At the Center’s event, “Disasters & Resilience,” [...]

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Tags: Federal Emergency Management Administration

In D.C. Speech, Israeli Resilience Expert Argues “An Active Public Is A Resilient Public And A Passive Public Is A Vulnerable Public”

April 30th, 2010 · No Comments

As the concept of ‘resilience’ in homeland security gains prominence here in the U.S., the Homeland Security Policy Institute (HSPI) at George Washington University hosted a timely speech by Brigadier-General (ret.) Meir Elran, of The Institute for National Security Studies at Tel Aviv University, “The Israeli Experience: From Civil Defense To Resilience.” According to the HSPI summary [...]

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Tags: International · Preparedness Events

For Current Effort To Increase Citizen Role In Homeland Security & Nation’s Resilience, 2003 “Civil Security” Report Offers Useful Guidance

October 4th, 2009 · 1 Comment

After I posted DHS’s 2006 “Civil Defense And Homeland Security” report last month, Bill Cumming reminded me about another study, Amanda Dory’s “Civil Security: Americans And The Challenge Of Homeland Security,” published by the Center For Strategic & International Studies (CSIS).
I read Dory’s terrific report when it was released in 2003. And, six years later, as the [...]

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Tags: Preparedness Ideas · Preparedness Reports

“After the Storms, An Island of Calm — And Resilience”

September 11th, 2009 · 1 Comment

I wanted to post an op-ed piece from today’s New York Times by Eric Sanderson, “After The Storms, An Island Of Calm — And Resilience”:

In September 1609, the beach near the tip of the island was surrounded by thickly wooded hills. Passenger pigeons flew overhead; porpoises hunted in the harbor. Around 600 Native Americans lived [...]

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Tags: Preparedness Ideas

In #NPM Proclamation, Obama Calls Preparedness “A Top Priority”, Says “More Resilient Nation” Is “Our Goal”

September 8th, 2009 · No Comments

In a proclamation declaring September as National Preparedness Month (NPM), President Obama declares that preparedness is “a top priority” of his Administration and emphasizes a “more resilient nation” as “our goal”. The statement begins:
“Preparedness is an essential element of a resilient and secure Nation. My Administration has made preparedness a top priority, and we are [...]

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Tags: President Obama