Women in Emergency Management, Business Continuity & Crisis Management Webinar, Feb 1

Feb 1, 7-8pm EST

The purpose of this event is to provide 16 aspiring emergency managers with the accessibility to 4 experienced emergency managers, business continuity, and crisis management professionals and enable 1:4 conversations in a comfortable and non-intensive environment.

Panelists:

• Andrea Davis, CEM – Senior Director, Global Emergency Management & Business Continuity at Walmart
• Doniella Mckoy, CBCP, MBCI – Business Continuity Program Administrator at Health Partners Plans
• Nora O’Brien, MPA, CEM – CEO of Connect Consulting Services
• Melody Wen, AEM, ABCP – Regional Crisis Management Specialist at Facebook

The registration for this event is full but please message Andrew Owlett via Linkedin at:

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/activity-6759581241583915008-ys8C

FEMA Holding Disability Stakeholder Call on Personal Assistance Services on Jan 27

In June 2020, FEMA released the “Mass Care/Emergency Assistance Pandemic Planning Considerations Guide” to help state, local, tribal and territorial partners provide shelter services and maintain the health and well-being of disaster survivors and workers in a pandemic environment.

FEMA recently released a personal assistance service addendum to the original guidance that will assist state, local, tribal and territorial partners in anticipating and attending to the needs of people with disabilities.

Personal assistance services are provided to individuals of all ages with physical, sensory, intellectual, learning and/or other disabilities to help with activities of daily living, such as grooming, eating, bathing, toileting, and dressing, taking medication and communicating. Personal Assistance services also help people with disabilities access programs and services.

Join the Office of Disability Integration and Coordination call at 1 p.m. ET on Jan. 27 to learn more about how providing personal assistance services at the onset of a disaster sheltering mission can reduce health and safety risks for people with disabilities:

• Call: 800-289-0459
• Participant Passcode: 401190

At the start time of the event, please login to the event.

Please send questions to be addressed during the call to FEMA by Jan. 25.

The Impact of COVID-19 on Children and Families Webinar, Jan 26

Hear from trusted experts working in pediatric emergency medicine, clinical psychology and behavioral health as they address how families can work together to keep healthy routines, manage emotions & behavior and build resilience.  

Panelists:

• Kandra Strauss-Riggs, MPH (Moderator) – Education Director, National Center for Disaster Medicine and Public Health
• Rachel Kaul, LCSW, CTS – Senior Advisor and Lead for Behavioral Health ASPR/EMMO
• Dominique Charlot – Swilley, PhD (Invited) – Psychologist at Early Childhood Innovation Network (ECIN), Children’s National Primary Care
• Joelle N. Simpson, MD, MPH, FAAP, FACEP – Children’s National Hospital Medical Director for Emergency Preparedness, Medical Advisor to Prince George’s County Public Schools. 

Register at: https://usuhs.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJ0pceuvrj4qGddBK0c1NPlhRVaD0xKXhBJo

FEMA Reviewing Mitigation Fund Legislation

The President signed the STORM act on Jan. 1. The act establishes a fund for local governments to eliminate or reduce disaster damage.

The Safeguarding Tomorrow through Ongoing Risk Mitigation (STORM) Act provides capitalization grants to participating states and tribes in order to loan money to local governments for hazard mitigation projects. As loans are repaid, the funds are available for other mitigation project loans. The revolving loan funds have the potential to offer lower interest rates and more flexible terms and conditions than the private market.

Congress has not yet appropriated funds for the STORM Act. An appropriation is necessary for its implementation.

The act states that $100 million would be authorized for fiscal years 2022 and 2023. Participating states and tribal governments must submit an intended use plan to FEMA annually to demonstrate how they will administer the revolving loan funds. States are defined as any state of the United States, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.

A revolving loan fund uses a source of capital to states and tribes to provide direct loans to local governments. It may finance water, wastewater, infrastructure, disaster recovery, community and small business development projects.

FEMA Ensures the Delivery of Mission

On Jan. 20 Region 9 Regional Administrator Bob Fenton will officially become the Acting FEMA Administrator until the Senate confirms new agency leadership. This is to ensure there is no interruption in the delivery of FEMA’s critical mission. Additionally, the Region 3 Regional Administrator Mary Ann Tierney will serve as the FEMA Deputy Administrator immediately following the presidential inauguration ceremony.

FEMA has been planning for a presidential transition since the spring of 2020. This planning ensures a smooth and orderly transition to the new administration, continuity across the agency’s programs and allows our dedicated and knowledgeable workforce to focus on the mission.

FEMA has been fully engaged with our federal, state and local authorities before this event and will remain so during and after the presidential inauguration. To learn more on how FEMA is supporting the Presidential Transition, visit FEMA.gov.

Witt O’Brien’s offers new scholarship and internship opportunities for HBCU students; application deadline is Jan. 31

Witt O’Brien’s has announced a new opportunity this year that is specifically for students who attend Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU). Two applicants will receive the “Resilience Through Diversity Award,” which will provide them with both a $5,000 scholarship and a paid $5,000 summer internship with Witt O’Brien’s. Download flyer for details and student eligibility. The application form and required attachments are available on Witt O’Brien’s website. The application deadline is Jan. 31, 2021.

3D Elevation Program announces three developments

There have been three important recent developments regarding the U.S. Geological Survey’s 3D Elevation Program (3DEP). First, the bipartisan National Landslide Preparedness Act (H.R. 8810) was signed into law (P.L. 116-323). Section 5 of the bill authorizes USGS 3DEP. Read more here. A fact sheet/brief report has been published, and highlights the connection to 3DEP. Second, the recent omnibus/consolidated spending bill (H.R. 133) for FY2021, P.L. 116-260, contained report language on USGS 3DEP to promote LiDAR technology for enhanced elevation data collection nationwide. And third, last month to help brief the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and USDA on rural broadband connectivity and precision agriculture, the associate director for Core Science Systems at USGS, Kevin Gallagher, briefed the mapping working group for the task force authorized in the 2018 Farm Bill regarding the use of 3DEP data to serve as a base-level map for the National Broadband Map, as well as the ability to leverage this nationwide mapping dataset for gap analysis in maximizing rural broadband infrastructure deployment based on the National Terrain Model that 3DEP provides. The Broadband DATA Act (P.L. 116-130) contained a provision calling for the FCC to consult with the Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) before updating the National Broadband Map. USGS helps guide the FGDC.

Australia Institute for Disaster Resilience is considering abstracts from speakers for 2021 Australian Disaster Resilience Conference

The deadline is Feb. 8 to submit an abstract to be considered for presentation during the 2021 Australian Disaster Resilience Conference, Aug. 18-19, 2021, in Sydney, Australia. The disaster risk and resilience landscape is constantly evolving, and so too are the approaches we take. Meaningful community engagement and community-led approaches are essential to effectively support disaster resilience. The systems, frameworks and enabling environments created through well-considered policy and coordination also are necessary. To find the right balance, the Australian Disaster Resilience Conference returns in 2021 to explore the theme, “Meeting in the Middle: Community Voices and Complex Choices.” Be part of the national conversation by submitting an abstract of no more than 300 words. Complete details are available online.

IAEM seeks volunteers by Jan. 24 to participate in an emergency management job analysis

IAEM is seeking volunteers representing all functions of emergency management and all emergency management job types to participate in a job analysis for emergency managers. All volunteers must be working full-time in the field of emergency management. This is open to participants worldwide. Complete details and the application form can be found on the IAEM website. The deadline to apply is Jan. 24. Questions can be directed to IAEM Program Manager Kate McClimans.

ACAPS H2H Fund satisfaction survey

Dear ACAPS user,
With the help of the H2H fund, we have produced about 12 products in 2020, including the COVID-19 series on education, insecurity, and gender, as well as the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. 

COVID-19 limitations have led H2H to rethink certain processes and design an online satisfaction survey. Questions are aiming at getting a better understanding of H2H users, who they are, and how we can make H2H packages and services even more relevant and accessible.

We would like to ask you to please fill out the survey by 29 January. We want to hear from you.

Take the survey at: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/5F837PP