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Have you heard? The FEMA
Individual and Community Preparedness Awards are back! There are
three new categories to highlight even more of the actions you take to make
your communities safer, better prepared, and more resilient. Take a look below
to learn more about the new categories and a few others.
Be sure to check
out the list of FAQs for information about all the award categories.
Read the guidance
for applying, and apply
today! All applications must be sent to citizencorps@fema.dhs.gov
by Monday, March 28 at 11:59 p.m. EDT.
Outstanding Inclusive Initiatives
in Emergency Management (new)
Presented
to an organization, program, or jurisdiction that has excelled in working with
populations that are disproportionately impacted by disasters due to risks
associated with economic status, limited English proficiency, cultural
diversity, or access and functional needs in order to better prepare them for
disasters.
Outstanding Private Sector
Initiatives (new)
This award
is presented to a small business that has demonstrated outstanding creativity
and made a measurable impact in engaging employees and local communities to
improve disaster preparedness and resilience. “Small business” applicants must
comply with business size standards provided by the Small Business
Administration (SBA).
America’s PrepareAthon! in Action
(new)
Presented to an organization or community that has
implemented a registered America’s PrepareAthon! event using America’s
PrepareAthon! resources, which incorporates specific actions taken by
individuals to strengthen preparedness and resilience in the face of disasters.
Activities may include any of the America’s PrepareAthon! 10 Ways to Participate or
other initiatives, which showcase individual preparedness.
Outstanding
Citizen Corps Council
Presented to a Citizen Corps Council (community,
county, regional, territory, tribal, or state) that demonstrates whole
community collaboration to achieve innovative and sustainable practices in
emergency management to make the jurisdiction safer, stronger, better prepared,
and more resilient.
Outstanding Citizen Corps Partner
Program
Presented to a Citizen Corps
Partner Program that demonstrates excellence and innovation in achieving the
program’s mission. Eligible programs include Fire Corps, Neighborhood Watch,
Medical Reserve Corps, Community Emergency Response Team, and Volunteers in
Police Service. Volunteer recruitment and sustainment, capacity building, and
return on investment are factors for evaluation.
Technological
Innovation
Presented for creative and effective use of current
technology, newly developed technology, or social media that improves the
ability of individuals and communities to prepare for, respond to, or recover
from disasters.
Throughout the awards application period, the FEMA eBrief will showcase past winners.
In 2015, FEMA recognized the collaborative work of three programs in the New York City Emergency Management’s Community Outreach Unit – Ready New York, NYC Citizen Corps, and the NYC Community Emergency Response Team. To help immigrant and limited English proficiency communities during disaster, the three programs worked together to provide customized tools and information to millions of New Yorkers with limited English proficiency. From distributing preparedness toolkits to producing a film for an Emmy award-winning series, the programs created a successful outreach model for individual emergency preparedness education that addresses the needs of communities that are often difficult to reach.
On Tuesday, March 15, FEMA will host a webinar
providing an overview of the 2016 Individual and Community Preparedness Awards
and highlighting the benefits of winning this prestigious honor. This webinar
will also feature past winners who will discuss how the awards impacted their
programs and communities.
Title: Community
Discussion: 2016 FEMA Individual and Community Preparedness Awards Overview
Date: Tuesday, March 15, 2016
Time: 2:00–3:00 p.m. EDT
Featured Speakers:
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Iskra Gencheva, Ready
New York, NYC Citizen Corps, NYC Community Emergency Response Team; 2015 winner
of Outstanding Citizen Corps Council.
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Brenda Emrick, Orange County, California CERT Mutual Aid
Program; 2015 winner of the Outstanding Community Emergency Response Team
Initiatives.
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Betsy Miller, Whole
Community Disaster Simulation, Ready Montana; 2015 winner of the John D.
Solomon Whole Community Preparedness Award.
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Craig Wolfe, Emergency
Preparedness Coordinator for Hull, MA; 2015 winner of the Community
Preparedness Heroes.
-
Yuri Graves, City of
Henderson, NV Get READY! Stay READY! Campaign; 2015 winner of Awareness to
Action.
How to Join the Webinar:
We hope that you will be able to join us on March 15!
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is extending
the deadline for Youth Preparedness Council applications to Sunday, March 20,
11:59 p.m. PDT, due to numerous requests. FEMA will also accept applications
for students currently in 8th, 9th, or 10th grade that are engaged in
individual and community preparedness, or have experienced a disaster that
motivated him or her to make a positive difference in their community.
Youth interested in applying to the Council must submit a
completed application form, two letters of recommendation, and academic
records. Specific information about completing and submitting the application
and attachments can be found in the application instructions. All applications
and supporting materials must be received no later than March 20, 2016, 11:59
p.m. PDT in order to be eligible. New Youth Preparedness Council members will
be announced in May 2016.
For more information about the Youth Preparedness Council
and to access the application materials, please visit www.ready.gov/youth-preparedness-council.
On
Wednesday, March 9, Buncombe County
will host an America’s PrepareAthon!
event – becoming the first county in North Carolina to do so.
The
Department
of Emergency Services of Buncombe County (EMS) will hold a
county-wide tornado drill in coordination with North Carolina’s Severe Weather
Awareness Week. On the day of the drill, more than 20,000 students and
employees in Buncombe County and the City of Asheville schools and government
offices, The Biltmore Group LLC, Ingles Markets, and Asheville-Buncombe
Technical Community College will practice going to their protective location.
The
day will kick off with a media event at the EMS office. Following the media
event, Biltmore Estate employees will move to their designated safe area as
part of the tornado drill.
The
National Weather Service
will simulate a tornado warning using its routine weekly test for the National
Oceanic Atmospheric Administration Weather Radio network. Students and school
faculty also plan to participate in the drill and will immediately move to
their designated safe areas and crouch with their hands over their heads until
school officials announce the all-clear. City of Asheville employees will
practice going to the location that provides the highest available level of
protection. The day’s drill will conclude at Ingles Markets.
Buncombe
County residents can also register for the county’s notification system, Nixle,
to receive emergency alerts and other official announcements. Text BCALERT to
88877 to begin receiving the county's text notifications.
You
can find
more information about tornado preparedness resources on the America’s
PrepareAthon! website.
On Thursday,
March 10, FEMA’s Individual and Community Preparedness Division invites you
to a webinar featuring several local Community Emergency Response Team programs
that developed creative methods to connect with their communities. The webinar
will focus on the rewarding and challenging work of CERT programs to increase
awareness and conduct promotional activity.
Title: CERT
Outreach and Promotion
Date: Thursday, March 10, 2016
Time: 3:00–4:30 p.m. EST
This webinar will feature guest speakers from CERT programs in the following
jurisdictions:
-
Tim Tutak, Farmington
Hills Emergency Preparedness Commission, MI
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Kevin Mercier, Sturbridge
CERT, MA
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Ellen Seeley, Cape Coral
CERT, FL
How to Join the Webinar:
We
hope to that you will be able to join us on March 10!
Disclaimer: The reader recognizes that the
federal government provides links and informational data on various disaster
preparedness resources and events and does not endorse any non-federal events,
entities, organizations, services or products. Please let us know about other events
and services for individual and community preparedness that could be included
in future newsletters by contacting citizencorps@fema.dhs.gov.
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