Complete EM Podcast

Or should we have introduced them as Pete and Suzanne?  The answer is: it just depends on the cultural context. In this episode we explore the power of culture, its ability to make or break outcomes, and what emergency managers can do to, well, better manage it.

Preparing to support people with access and functional needs (AFN) during disaster does not necessarily require hiring specialists or developing elaborate plans and procedures. In this episode, Los Angeles County's DAFN program manager describes how fostering inclusion during all phases of emerency management efforts can not only enhance traditional preparedness programs, but also create opportunities for many new and valuable partnerships in the AFN community.

Many kids grow up wanting to be cops, firefighters and medics. And now that the profession is becoming established, some are even looking forward to careers as emergency managers. Careers within public safety, however, are still full of both risk and reward.  In this episode we explore how the two factors interact and sometimes dramatically change the lives of both rescuees and rescuers.

Has your emergency management program seriously considered the use of social media, drones, tablets and other tempting new technologies? In this episode, we discuss the responsibility of emergency managers to accomplish basic work before adopting new technologies and then to do so carefully by thinking about useful life, total cost of ownership, opportunity cost, return on investment and other important considerations.

Tim Manning worked the last eight years as a FEMA Deputy Adminstrator in charge of Protection and National Preparedness. Emergency management and homeland security have dramatically changed since he took office in 2009. In this episode, we revisit what he saw going into Washington DC, what he and FEMA were able to accomplish and what he sees for the future of our profession.

How do emergency management programs differ across the U.S. and in jurisdictions of different size? In this episode we went east to the nation's largest city - New York City - to discuss their unique duty officer program and EOC organization, as well as the city's use of technology, relationship building and public engagement. Perhaps most important, we again found evidence that emergency management programs across the country improve in much the same way: one thoughtful, deliberate step at a time.

Emergency managers who don't develop and maintain a recovery plan leave that work for someone else. When a community is "lucky" enough to be declared a disaster area by the POTUS or head of a Federal agency, then a some assistance may be available to individuals, families, community-based organizations and government, but huge gaps often remain. Filling that gap in recovery assistance - between what the government and insurance complanies provide - are volunteer agencies.

What does it take to "move the needle" when it comes to community disaster preparedness? In this episode, Mona Curry shares how the City of Los Angeles is partnering across departments and with existing neighborhood councils to engage more residents and businesses in disaster preparedness activities.

Emergency managment and homeland security programs would be vastly different and in many jurisdictions, may not exist at all, without grants. In this episode, we speak with someone who administers several grant programs within a state. He outlines the primary emergency management grants, what makes local grant programs effective and how applicants can  achieve better outcomes.