The Resilient Nation Roundup | April 2024

April 2024

2024 RNPN Partnership Forum

Thank you to everyone who has participated in the 2024 Partnership Forum so far! Join us tomorrow, April 18 and next week on April 25 from 1 – 3 p.m. ET for Days 3 and 4 of the Forum. Tomorrow we will discuss “Extreme Heat: Reflecting on the Hottest Summer to Date.” Next week, we will discuss “Tribal Migration: Adapting to Climate Hazards." Each week, we will explore how we can use storytelling to advance and inspire climate action and will feature clips from the films The Hottest August by Brett Story (April 18) and Newtok: The Water Is Rising by Andrew Burton (April 25).

Register at FEMA.gov/RNPN

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UPCOMING EVENTS

FEMA Events:

Conferences and Workshops to Note:


FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES

SPIN Global: The SPIN Global Community Disaster Resilience Fund

The SPIN Global Community Disaster Resilience Fund directs private equity and pension fund investments toward infrastructure projects. These projects must have a value between $100 million and $50 billion. Its first areas of interest include energy, communications, transportation, and water projects. The fund seeks projects that will reduce risk to disasters. It also seeks projects that will improve economic opportunities in underserved and marginalized communities through private-public partnership.  

The fund offers quick financing within just 16 weeks of initial project approval. It is another way to solve the pressing challenge of funding resilient infrastructure across the world. 

Learn more here.


TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE 

Environmental Protection Agency: "Creating Co-Benefits Through Hazard Mitigation Planning and Water Resource Management" Training

EPA’s Nonpoint Source (NPS) program, alongside EPA’s Watershed Academy, is excited to announce the release of a web-based training. This training is calledCreating Co-Benefits Through Hazard Mitigation Planning and Water Resource Management.” It was developed with review and feedback from partners at FEMA. It helps water quality and hazard mitigation professionals work water quality issues, water resource management, and nature-based practices into state or local Hazard Mitigation Plans (HMPs). Modules in this series can serve as training tools. They can help planners from both fields explore activities of shared interest and benefit. Case studies and real-world examples show planners how to connect with water resource programs through hazard mitigation planning. They also help watershed planners learn how water resource plans and HMPs can support each other.  

Learn more here.


Partner News

FEMA: The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) Supports Flood Awareness Weeks Nationwide

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At different times from early March through June, states across the country will observe the National Weather Service’s flood awareness and preparedness week. These weeks teach people about the flood risks that threaten both coastal and inland regions. Examples include riverine flooding, metro flooding, flood after fire, hurricane, and more. FEMA’s NFIP supports stakeholders in states that take part in these weeks. It delivers shareable resources, like the Flood Awareness Week social media package. It also encourages direct outreach to communities to increase preparedness and resilience.

Learn more here


American Flood Coalition: Through Blueprint, North Carolina Takes Watershed Level Approach to Flooding

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The Blueprint is North Carolina’s first complete statewide vision on flooding. It offers communities guidance on how to make decisions and drive investments.

 

Learn more here


Disaster Recovery Institute International Survey: Share Your Insights on What's Next for the Resilience Field

DRI International needs to hear from experienced professionals in risk management, disaster recovery, and other resilience areas. They are asking partners to take this short survey to share your insights on the next big challenges and ways DRI can help you manage them.

Take the survey here


The Resiliency Initiative (TRI): Inaugural Resiliency Academy 

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The Resiliency Initiative is excited to announce the launch of The Resiliency Academy. The launch will take place in San Antonio, Texas, from May 6 to 7. The Academy is a two-day workshop. It focuses on all-hazards preparedness for the private sector. Their expert team will provide you with the building blocks you need to create a best-in-class crisis management program. 

 

Register here


Environmental Defense Fund Releases Report on Wetlands

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The Environmental Defense Fund released a preliminary analysis of U.S. wetlands at risk of losing federal protections. The report also details the importance of wetlands and provides resources to learn more about the issue.

 

 

Learn more here


Stories of Resilience: Voices That Inspire

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Do you have a story to tell? The RNPN wants to learn more about your journey toward climate resilience. Sharing your wins and challenges can help others learn from your experience. You can submit photos, video, audio, text, or art about your resilience journey.

Are you ready to share? Visit the Stories of Resilience: Voices That Inspire website to learn more. 


New Resources

CREW: A New Podcast Features Geologic Hazard Portals

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CREW released a Ready to Recover podcast. In it, geologists talk about state geologic portals. These portals are interactive tools that anyone can use to learn about the earthquake hazard where they live.  

 

Learn more here


National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration: Sediment Management Guide Supports Coastal Resilience by Identifying Path to Efficient Permitting 

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The new Efficient Permitting Roadmap for Coastal Sediment Management on the north-central California Coast helps readers navigate permit reviews. This includes everything from tidal marsh, beach, or dune restoration to the beneficial use of sediment.

Learn more here


FEMA Seeks National Resilience Guidance Input

FEMA wants feedback on the draft National Resilience Guidance, starting on April 23. This guidance will promote a common understanding of resilience. It will also highlight the vital relationship between community stressors and shocks. Finally, it will address the roles of all stakeholders to build national resilience. The guidance provides an actionable way to plan and carry out resilience projects. It uses a community resilience growth model with concrete steps to build resilience. 

FEMA will host a series of four 60-minute webinar sessions in May. These sessions will give an overview of the National Resilience Guidance. They will also gather feedback and real-world resilience case studies from whole community partners. A line-numbered version of the draft guide will be available. It will let people share comments on certain areas within the document. This national engagement period will end on May 23, 2024. 

Keep an eye on the National Resilience Guidance webpage for registration information.


National Center for Disaster Preparedness: New Web-Based Trainings

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Web-based trainings are currently available for mass care and relocation, pandemic planning, and post-disaster housing and economic disaster recovery. These free, web-based trainings can be completed on your own time.

Learn more here


FEMA

FEMA: Guide to Expanding Mitigation: Making the Connection to Faith-Based Partners

Not long ago, FEMA released the Guide to Expanding Mitigation: Making the Connection to Faith-Based Partners. This guide will help hazard mitigation, community planning and emergency managers engage with faith-based organizations during the planning process. This resource outlines the benefits of working with these groups. It shares ways to build strong relationships and resilient communities as well. It also helps improve effective and efficient recovery strategies across the nation. To do so, it helps emergency managers empower communities to build local capacity. This will prepare them withstand future hazards. 

Working alongside faith-based organizations helps mitigation professionals join local, state, tribal nation, and territorial leaders to reach a wider audience. Those who lead and serve in faith-based organizations may want to learn how to reduce disaster risks to protect their communities. Such people may find the guide useful.  

The guide is part of a series that highlights new and creative partnerships for mitigation. It shows how communities can support hazard mitigation projects and planning by engaging the whole community. Go to FEMA’s Hazard Mitigation Best Practices Library to learn more about hazard mitigation.  

Read more here


my tall house

FEMA Releases "My Tall House" Coloring Book

FEMA recently published its third coloring book in the “Safer Communities” series, “My Tall House.” Through vibrant illustrations and simple explanations, children ages 4 to 8 learn how elevating homes can lower flood risks and make them safer during natural disasters. 

This 11-page coloring book is available in English and Spanish. It includes pages that share a story about friends rebuilding their playhouse after a flood. It also has a glossary of age-appropriate terms to expand vocabulary. Finally, it contains activities that kids can do with an adult. 

"My Tall House" joins “My Safe Yard” and “My Rain Garden” as part of the “Safer Communities” coloring book series. These books teach children about mitigation solutions in a fun way that is easy to understand. These earlier coloring books are also available in Spanish. They teach children how rain gardens can reduce flood risk and how to prepare your home for a storm. 

FEMA

FEMA: Fact Sheet on Art & Culture

FEMA published the Fact Sheet on Art and Culture: Helping People Before, During, and After Disasters. Its goal was to raise awareness of how art, emergency management and community resilience relate. The fact sheet highlights ways to support artists, cultural institutions, and the art community in disaster mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery. This will help them build resilience through their unique vision and skills.  

Read more here