Disaster Zone

This podcast focuses on the depth and breadth of managing an emergency management program for a major university that has multiple campuses. This is a forthright discussion of the challenges and opportunities of operating in a university setting.

The podcast guest is Denise Whisman who has served as the Senior Director of Emergency Management at Arizona State University since May 2023 where she plays a pivotal role in developing and implementing standardized emergency response plans across the university enterprise worldwide. Her responsibilities include coordinating with various governmental and non-governmental agencies, providing guidance to campus groups, and leading a team of emergency management specialists.

Prior to her current role, Denise served as the Emergency Management Program Manager at Banner Health across Southern Arizona, Cochise County's Risk Management, Safety & Loss Control division, Instructor Supervisor and Disaster Program Manager with the American Red Cross in Arizona and New Mexico, and service in the United States Navy as a Fleet Marine Force Corpsman, Emergency Medical Technician, and Preventive Medicine Technician.

She earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Emergency Management and Homeland Security through Arizona State University, officially becoming a master of disaster in 2021.

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In this Disaster Zone Podcast we will be talking about the significant challenges New Zealand and Christchurch faced in the aftermath of their 2010-2011 Earthquakes. The podcast guest is Brent Winder is a native New Zealander. He has had multiple roles in leadership ranging from ten years in the New Zealand Navy, to positions with Queens Town Lakes District Council and the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority (CERA).

He was a founding staff member responsible for operations in the Christchurch Central Business District (CBD) red zone and supporting the largest and most complex demolition project in New Zealand’s history. Additionally, he successfully managed widespread and large-scale demolition and land management – in a disaster recovery context. He has also led an expert recovery team to Kathmandu, Nepal post-2015 earthquakes, and he is a member of the deployable New Zealand Emergency Management Assistance Team (EMAT).

 Like many of us, he Played a regional role inthe Whole of Government emergency response in the COVID-19 Pandemic. In his current role he is lead emergency management for Christchurch City Council. You can contact him at [email protected]

Check out more episodes and the Disaster Zone Blog: www.thereadinesslab.com/disaster-zone
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Government and businesses work side by side to prepare their respective organizations to become disaster resilient. In this podcast we focus on what that looks like for businesses; how that matches up government emergency management; and then we delve a little bit into emergency management in the military due to our guest’s professional experiences while serving in the US Army. The podcast guest is Erika Andresen, JD, CBCP, MPA  who is a recognized expert and consultant in Business Continuity. Her varied experience gives her a unique perspective on Business Continuity. She has nearly two decades of experience as a lawyer in both the corporate finance world and the military.

Erika became a subject matter expert in national security and disaster preparedness and response while advising different commands including during high-risk situations while deployed in Afghanistan. Her work with actual disasters led her to attain a Master of Public Affairs (MPA).   Erika left active duty in 2020 and has since started EaaS Consulting, LLC, with the goal of keeping business in business. To that end, she authored How to Not Kill Your Business: Grow Your Business in Any Environment, Navigate Volatility, and Successfully Recover When Things Go Wrong, a conversational introduction to business continuity enjoyed by CBCP practitioners and business owners alike. Erika is also a professor of emergency management for the MPA program at the University of Texas at El Paso.

Healthcare in a disaster is a basic need that brings many challenges. To achieve success in a disaster, much time and preparation and planning needs to be accomplished before a disaster strikes. In this podcast we have a wide-ranging discussion with Tom Cotter, MPH, executive director of Healthcare Ready Tom brings more than a decade of global health readiness and response expertise to expand the nonprofit’s mission-driven work addressing health equity. During his 15-year career as a public health and emergency management professional, Cotter has piloted and launched innovative international strategies to localize emergency response operations and build sustainable response functions worldwide. 

Cotter holds a Master of Public Health degree from Boston University School of Public Health, a certificate from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and earned his Bachelor of Arts in Public and Community Service Studies at Providence College. He also attended the University of the Philippines as part of an international research team focused on the socioeconomic determinants of health and has served as an emergency response coordinator for the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services since 2013.During the podcast Tom referenced a previous podcast, Myths on Public Behavior in Disaster Movies which is linked here. And, the issue of supply chain and blood supply was mentioned, and another previous Disaster Zone Podcast on that topic, Blood Donations, Disasters and Covid-19.

Dynamis, a leading provider of information management software and security solutions, is a sponsor of this podcast. 
Eric Holdeman is a professional emergency manager who is passionate about providing information that can help families, businesses & governments become better prepared for disasters of all types. Hear first hand expert insights from Eric on his Podcast, Blog & EricHoldeman.com.

El Paso, like many border jurisdictions, works to maintain good working relationships with their cross-border international neighbors. What makes it much more challenging is the mass migration of immigrants that has occurred in recent years, beginning in 2019. Jorge Rodriguez, the podcast guest is the Emergency Management Director for the El Paso City-County Office of Emergency Management. He has held that position for over seven years. He leads the Office of Emergency Management’s mission to cultivate a resilient community through collaborative partnerships to prevent, prepare, mitigate, respond and recover from large-scale emergencies and disasters. The podcast discusses their challenge of emergency management’s role in dealing with the influx of migrants. Jorge also highlights his belief that emergency management is moving to a stage of our profession where we need to be transitioning from an “all-hazards” approach to one that is “all-crisis.” This is because we are being called upon to provide leadership in areas that have not been emergency management’s domain. This episode is sponsored by Bent Ear Solutions which offers comprehensive capabilities and deep industry knowledge necessary to help you solve the most complex issues of your organization. We advise public and private organizations on an all-inclusive approach to disaster preparedness that addresses governance, planning, operational procedures, technology implementation, training, and exercises in order to achieve a successful and sustainable program. 

Eric Holdeman is a professional emergency manager who is passionate about providing information that can help families, businesses & governments become better prepared for disasters of all types. Hear first hand expert insights from Eric on his Podcast, Blog & EricHoldeman.com.

Emergency management and crisis leadership demand more than technical skills and knowledge in today’s fast-paced and complex world. To better access information on demand, make appropriate decisions, and lead most effectively, it is essential to understand how the brain works. A critical cognitive skill set known as executive function (EF) is at the heart of effective decision-making in high-pressure situations.

Leaders with robust EF skills are at a distinct advantage. They are better equipped to make informed decisions under pressure and navigate the intricacies of contemporary organizational landscapes and global challenges. EF is especially critical in crisis management and high-stakes decision-making scenarios where clarity of thought and efficient action can be game-changers. The podcast Guest is Kim Guevara, MA Founder and CEO at MOZAIK Solutions  Kim has 25 years’ experience in emergency management, homeland security, and development. She has provided services to all levels of government, the U.S. military, and the private and non-profit sectors. Kim’s combined experience in emergency/crisis management, health community initiatives in humanitarian crises, and organizational leadership also led her to co-create the Crisis Athlete™ program. At its core, the program challenges, questions, and envisions new, more sustainable pathways for crisis leaders to think about resilience by leveraging and applying the power of neuroscience at the individual, organizational, and community levels. You can read about this topic here: Executive Function: The Crisis Leader’s Edge in a High-Pressure World.

For more brain tools see www.crisisathlete.com.Dynamis, a leading provider of information management software and security solutions, is a sponsor of this podcast. 


Eric Holdeman is a professional emergency manager who is passionate about providing information that can help families, businesses & governments become better prepared for disasters of all types. Hear first hand expert insights from Eric on his Podcast, Blog & EricHoldeman.com.

A recent cascade of solar flares and coronal mass ejections has ignited vibrant auroras, stretching as far south as Alabama and Northern California. However, alongside this spectacle comes the potential for disruptions to Earth's communications systems throughout the upcoming weekend. This special rebroadcast episode covers "space weather". Everyone is familiar with the functions of the National Weather Service (NWS) and its role in forecasting the weather here on earth. They also have another function which is forecasting “space weather.” That is the topic of this podcast. Yes, there are potential dangers that can come from solar activity. The podcast guest is Mr. Shawn Dahl, a physical scientist who has worked at the Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC) since 2015 as a space weather forecaster. He is now a senior space weather forecaster and also provides Impact-based Decision Support Services (IDSS) issues and relations on behalf of SWPC. In this podcast the threats that come from the sun are reviewed as well as the detection methods and also the various dangers that are possible from solar activity. You can learn more about the SWPC at  www.swpc.noaa.gov.

Merit is a first-of-its-kind, all-hazards, digital credentialing platform that equips emergency responders with innovative tools to securely manage their personnel on-site, no matter the situation. Merit's platform is relied on in mission-critical situations such as the Surfside building collapse and at secure Health and Human Service facilities and is trusted by a growing network of thousands of partners.Eric Holdeman is a professional emergency manager who is passionate about providing information that can help families, businesses & governments become better prepared for disasters of all types. Hear first hand expert insights from Eric on his Podcast, Blog & EricHoldeman.com.

Since 2020 John Carr and Samantha Montano have been studying disaster movies and how they influence the public’s perceptions of disasters. Multiple researchers attributed the prevalence of disaster myths to disaster movies, but no empirical studies had supported or refuted that claim.

John Carr is a disaster Researcher and Educator out of Kansas City, Missouri. John's research interests include citizen engagement in disasters, CERT teams, rural emergency management, and disaster movies. John is an Emergency Management Analyst at Argonne National Laboratory, and also serves as Executive Director for the Consortium for Humanitarian Service and Education. His doctoral dissertation was on Disaster Movies and the Perception of Human Behavior Myths in Disasters. It can be found and accessed at: https://digitalcommons.jsu.edu/etds_dissertations/18/.

This podcast focuses on his research and findings concerning the impact of disaster movies on public perceptions of what will happen in a disaster.

This episode is sponsored by Bent Ear Solutions which offers comprehensive capabilities and deep industry knowledge necessary to help you solve the most complex issues of your organization. We advise public and private organizations on an all-inclusive approach to disaster preparedness that addresses governance, planning, operational procedures, technology implementation, training, and exercises in order to achieve a successful and sustainable program. 
 Eric Holdeman is a professional emergency manager who is passionate about providing information that can help families, businesses & governments become better prepared for disasters of all types. Hear first hand expert insights from Eric on his Podcast, Blog & EricHoldeman.com.

The emergency management community and average citizens are always interested in the disaster response aspect of a catastrophe. That interest fades dramatically as a disaster transitions to the recovery phase. With that in mind, this podcast takes a more in-depth look at the policy implications of the recovery phase of the Maui Firestorm of 2023.  The guest for this podcast is Luke Meyers, the Disaster Management Coordinator for the State of Hawaii, who works for the Governor. For the Maui disaster he is the State Disaster Recovery Coordinator.

Previously Luke has worked in local emergency management at the city and county levels, serving as a planner, mitigation planner and city emergency management director. He previously served as the Hawaii State Emergency Management Director. You can listen to a previous podcast with Luke at Hawaii Emergency Management.

Dynamis, a leading provider of information management software and security solutions, is a sponsor of this podcast. Eric Holdeman is a professional emergency manager who is passionate about providing information that can help families, businesses & governments become better prepared for disasters of all types. Hear first hand expert insights from Eric on his Podcast, Blog & EricHoldeman.com.

In this podcast Pete Gaynor, the immediate past Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Administrator and Acting Secretary of Homeland Security shares his experiences and ideas on how to hire staff at all levels. He put a special emphasis on hiring and was personally involved in the selection process for senior positions at FEMA.

Today he continues to lead by hosting training sessions on “Leading During Crisis.” You can learn more about that at his website, www.femapete.com  There are both in-person and on-line options for attending.

Before becoming FEMA Administrator, he held leadership positions in emergency management in the State of Rhode Island and was initially the Deputy FEMA Administrator.

Prior to his experience as an emergency manager, Mr. Gaynor served for 26 years as an enlisted Marine and Infantry Officer in the United States Marine Corps. During his tenure in the Marines, he was assigned as the Executive Officer responsible for the security of Presidential Retreat, Camp David; assigned as the Head of Plans, Policy, & Operations at the Headquarters Marine Corps during the September 11, 2001 attacks; and deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom with the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force.

This episode is sponsored by AshBritt, a national rapid-response emergency management and logistics company. Celebrating its 30th year, AshBritt has led response efforts following 60 federally declared disasters across 30 states and has conducted more than 400 missions, successfully serving over 600 clients. AshBritt is the trusted emergency management contractor for cities, counties, states and for federal agencies, including the Department of Defense where AshBritt holds a pre-position debris management contract which covers 25 U.S. states.  


Eric Holdeman is a professional emergency manager who is passionate about providing information that can help families, businesses & governments become better prepared for disasters of all types. Hear first hand expert insights from Eric on his Podcast, Blog & EricHoldeman.com.