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I am conducting research on applications of GIS in risk assessment and
am looking for people who have used GIS and/or visualization tools to
explore risk and vulnerability beyond making static risk maps. I'm
particularly interested in 3D modeling and VRML. I am also interested in
learning if someone has tried to spatially visualize the uncertainty
inherent in risk probabilities.
Thanks,
Jan Husdal
University of Utah
Department of Geography
260 S Central Campus Drive, Room 270
Salt Lake City, UT 84112-9155
(801) 581-8218
E-mail: jan.husdal@geog.utah.edu
WWW: http://www.husdal.com
Dear colleagues,
I'm writing to ask for your advice and help. I've just started work on a new research project on "The Private Sector and Natural Disaster Reduction."
Basically, it is a preliminary investigation of the private sector's involvement in natural disaster preparedness and mitigation work through its social responsibility and philanthropic programmes. The investigation will be at global level and in five South Asian countries (Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka). It will concentrate on the formal sector and take a particular interest in pre-disaster preparedness and mitigation. The research questions focus on the process of private sector involvement and its results.
Very little has been written about this topic, and there are few documented case studies. I would welcome your help in directing me to 1) documentation and 2) key informants (in the private sector and other organisations). If you know of anything, or anybody, please let me know! At this stage of the research we are interested in evidence from anywhere in the world.
As we have donor deadlines to meet, it would be good to receive your suggestions (e-mail: j.twigg@ucl.ac.uk) as soon as convenient. Thanks in advance for your help.
Dr. John Twigg
Hon. Research Fellow
Benfield Greig Hazard Research Centre
University College London
E-mail: j.twigg@ucl.ac.uk
Dear Disaster Research Readers,
We are planning to conduct a company-wide business impact analysis (BIA) to determine the impact associated with an outage of specific business functions and/or IT systems. Once the financial and/or political impact has been identified, we will use this information to determine the most appropriate recovery strategy and prioritize our recovery efforts.
As part of the BIA project we will be including a risk/threat assessment. Determining the impact without including the probability of risk would leave our findings open to questions we would not be prepared to answer.
We would be like to know if there is a standardized method for this type of assessment and how detailed it needs to be to offer credibility, without taking on a "life of its own." We would be interested in reviewing what other companies have done in this area or speaking with other business continuity planners that have undertaken this type of assessment.
I am seeking feedback from anyone who has conducted a business impact analysis, particularly looking at how a variety of natural (earthquakes, hurricanes, wildfires, etc.) and/or human caused (terrorism, sabotage, civil unrest, etc.) external events could interrupt business operations. We want to conduct a credible/realistic assessment that could be readily conveyed to our board.
Thanks for your help,
Nancy Kavin
E-mail: nkavin@mwd.dst.ca.us
Tel: (213) 217-6262
Project OSIRIS is a EU effort to examine how information is disseminated before, during, and after floods. Recent catastrophic floods in southern and central Europe have demonstrated a need to reconsider this process, in particular, the need to:
The project involves several tasks, one of which is to create an open discussion forum on the dissemination of information before, during, and after floods. Two subjects - flood prevention and flood forecasting - have been selected as initial topics for the forum, and three initial discussion subjects have been proposed: 1) models for real-time forecasting, 2) attempts and experience in flash flood forecasting and warning, and 3) forecasting and legal liability.
All interested persons are invited to participate. Ultimately, any subject related to management of flood risks will be welcome. The forum creators invite users to share their experiences and describe recent floods and the communication tools they found useful. To participate, go to http://www.ist-osiris.org, click on OSIRIS (enter) and on "Forum," or go straight to http://www.ist-osiris.org/extern/discus/index.html. The principal language of the forum will be English, but French, German, and Polish will also be accepted.
[Below are some new or updated Internet resources we've discovered. For an extended list of Internet sites dealing with hazards, see http://www.colorado.edu/hazards/sites/sites.html]
http://www.sba.gov/DISASTER
To support its disaster assistance program, the U.S. Small Business
Administration (SBA) has established this web site that not only offers
information about the agency and its disaster loan programs, but also
provides general information about disaster preparedness, current
disasters in which the SBA is active, and other aid programs available
from the federal government.
http://www.eriskcenter.org
The goal of the Risk Management Resource Center is to provide
information that can help local governments, nonprofit organizations, and
small businesses manage risks effectively. The center is a collaborative
effort of the Public Risk Management Association (PRIMA), the Nonprofit
Risk Management Center (NRMC), and the Public Entity Risk Institute
(PERI). The materials available include conference papers, reports, and
publications; databases of information resources; and hundreds of links
to other useful Internet sites. Specifically, among its many resources,
the site provides the "PRIMAFile" On-line Library - abstracts of
materials contained in PRIMA's reference library (complete copies can be
ordered on-line); NRMC Risk Management Briefs - 25 free, downloadable
papers summarizing knowledge in various aspects of risk management;
papers and presentations from PRIMA, PERI, and NRMC conferences and
symposia; PERI's Risk Management Clearinghouse - a database of resources
on risk management; as well as numerous other publications, web links,
and resources.
http://www.fema.gov/mit/tsd
http://www.fema.gov/mit/tsd/DL_tmcfr.htm
The final report of FEMA's Technical Mapping Advisory Council is now
available for download from the Federal Emergency Management Agency's
Flood Hazard Mapping web page above. The report encapsulates five years
of work by the council, which was established by the 1994 National Flood
Insurance Reform Act. The council agreed on four key areas that FEMA must
pursue if the nation's floodplain maps are to be improved:
http://www.bghrc.com
The Benfield Grieg Hazard Research Centre (BGHRC) at the Department
of Geological Sciences, University College London, has recently published
the first issue of its newsletter, BGHRC ALERT, via the centre's web
site. BGHRC ALERT is designed to disseminate the work of the BGHRC - one
of Europe's leading academic hazard research centers - and to help
stimulate dialogue and understanding related to contemporary issues in
risk science and disaster management. It will be published and available
to all, free of charge, four times a year. The BGHRC site, which we've
mentioned before, includes much other information resulting from the
centre's research; topics range from Atlantic tsunami risks, to other
geological and meteorological hazards, to NGO initiatives in disaster
reduction - i.e., the centre's interests span the whole range of issues
associated with hazards.
The Association of State Floodplain Managers (ASFPM) has announced a new professional certification - the Advanced Certified Floodplain Manager (ACFM) - which will be granted exclusively by the association to individuals who assist communities in addressing their flooding problems through comprehensive approaches, and who encourage development of national flood policies and programs that promote thorough, well-conceived, sustainable local efforts. In short, individuals receiving ACFM certification will be leaders who have gone beyond their paid duties to further the profession and promote better understanding and practice at all levels.
The ACFM designation will be awarded to individuals who:
Through its Grant and Research Program, the Public Entity Risk Institute (PERI) seeks to fund projects, programs, research, and innovations that advance the practice of risk management in public, nonprofit, and private organizations.
There are broad areas of need at which the PERI grant program is aimed, with targeted needs identified on an annual basis by the institute's board of directors. Targeted areas for this year include: employee occupational safety and health, workers compensation, general liability, employment practices liability, and land-use planning.
Individual public entities and sate governmental associations are among the organizations eligible to receive PERI grants. PERI is actively seeking letters of interest for projects that address the areas listed above. For more information, see the PERI web site: http://www.riskinstitute.org; or call Claire Reiss, J.D., ARM, Director, Grant and Research Programs, (703) 352-1846.
The North Central Research Station of the USDA Forest Service has announced a job opportunity for a social scientist (psychology, geography, human dimensions of natural resources, management science, or other social science) to conduct and coordinate research on public responses to fire management practices, particularly fuel reduction and restoration. This permanent, full-time position is in the Evanston, Illinois (Chicago) area. It is a GS12/13-level position with full health, retirement, and vacation benefits.
Necessary Skills and Experience:
For application information or a copy of the recruitment notice, contact Peggy Castillo, (651) 649-5026; e-mail: pcastillo@fs.fed.us. To learn more about the research program, contact John Dwyer, (847) 866-9311, ext. 17; e-mail: jdwyer@fs.fed.us; Herbert Schroeder, (847) 866-9311, ext. 15; e-mail: hschroeder@fs.fed.us; Paul Gobster, (847) 866-9311, ext. 16; e-mail: pgobster@fs.fed.us. Please respond by May 30, 2001.
Below are descriptions of some recently awarded grants for the study of hazards and disasters. An inventory of contracts and grants awarded from 1995 to the present (primarily those funded by the National Science Foundation) is available on the Natural Hazards Center's web site: http://www.colorado.edu/hazards/grants.html.
***
The Role of Women in Post-Disaster Environments: Health and Community
Sustainability. Funding: Center for Disaster Management and Humanitarian
Assistance, $112,000, 12 months (2000-2001). Principal Investigators:
Graham A. Tobin, Department of Geography, and Linda Whiteford, Department
of Anthropology, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33620-8100; (813)
974-4932; e-mail: gtobin@chuma1.cas.usf.edu.
***
In the Shadow of the Volcano: Human Health and Community Resilience.
Funding: Center for Disaster Management and Humanitarian Assistance,
$139,000, 12 months (2001-2002). Principal Investigators: Graham A. Tobin
and Linda Whiteford, address as above.
The Capital Area Chapter of the American Red Cross is making the Instructors Manual for its very successful Emergency Management Planning Workshop for Business, Industry and Government available so that others can offer this course within their community. The workshop uses the FEMA/American Red Cross Emergency Management Guide for Business and Industry as its participant workbook. The Instructors Manual, Power Point workshop presentation on CD, and the workshop video are available for $125.00 from the Disaster Services Office, Capital Area Chapter, American Red Cross, 187 Office Plaza Drive, Tallahassee, FL 32301.
The Capital Area Chapter has been offering its Emergency Management Planning Workshop for Business, Industry and Government since 1997 and provided training to over 300 organizations. For additional information on the workshop, see: http://www.tallytown.com/redcross.
Below is a list of satellite broadcasts scheduled by the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Emergency Education Network (EENET). All presentations begin at 2:00 p.m. unless otherwise indicated.
The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), Regional Office for the Americas of the World Health Organization, has recently published the following books: - Natural Disasters: Protecting the Public's Health
[Below are some recent announcements received by the Natural Hazards Center. A comprehensive list of upcoming hazards-related meetings and training is available from our World Wide Web site: http://www.colorado.edu/hazards/conf.html]
Seminar: Tale of Two Cities: Caracas, Venezuela, Planning a Disaster- Resilient Metropolis. Host: Columbia University, Columbia Earth Institute, Proposed Center for Hazard and Risk Research. Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Palisades, New York: May 8, 2001; 2-4 p.m. See: http://www.earthinstitute.columbia.edu/events/lamont/HazardRisk.html.
Workshop on the George E. Brown, Jr., Network for Earthquake Engineering Simulation (NEES). University of California-San Diego: May 14-15, 2001. Contact: Dana Barre, Workshop Coordinator, Department of Structural Engineering, University of California-San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, Mail Code 0085, La Jolla, CA 92093-0085; (858) 534-7585; fax: (858) 534-6373; e-mail: nees2workshop@ucsd.edu; WWW: http://nees.ucsd.edu.
Managing Wildfire Risk at the Residential Interface Conference. Host: Utah State University Extension. Salt Lake City, Utah: May 15-16, 2001. See: http://www.ext.usu.edu/confer/wildfire/home.htm.
Louisiana Emergency Preparedness Association/Louisiana Office of Emergency Preparedness Annual Conference. Monroe, Louisiana: May 21-24, 2001. Contact: Gloria Robinson, LEPA Administrative Secretary, 700 North 10th Street, Suite #240, Baton Rouge, LA 70802; 1-877-405-5372 or (225) 344-5372; fax: (225) 344-5333; e-mail: info@lepa.org; WWW: http://www.lepa.org/annual.htm.
Firewise Communities Workshops. Sponsor: National Wildland/Urban
Interface Fire Program.
- Denver, Colorado: May 23-25, 2001.
- Hidden Valley, Pennsylvania: September 24-26, 2001
- St. Louis, Missouri: October 29-31, 2001
See: http://www.firewise.org/communities; or contact Michele Steinberg,
Institute for Business and Home Safety (IBHS); (617) 557-5566; e-mail:
msteinberg@ibhs.org.
Orange County Disaster Preparedness Academy. Host: American Red Cross, Orange County Chapter. Fullerton, California: May 30, 2001. Contact: Bonnie Olivett, Academy Coordinator, (714) 481-5341; e-mail: ocdpa@oc-redcross.org; WWW: http://www.oc-redcross.org/OCDPA-2001.htm.
Disasters . . . Everyone's Business: Today's Challenges, Tomorrow's Solutions. Sponsors: Michigan Department of State Police, Emergency Management Division; and Michigan Association of Counties. Novi, Michigan: May 31-June 1, 2001. See: http://www.msp.state.mi.us/division/emd/emdweb1.htm.
Alabama Emergency Management Council (AEMC) Summer Conference. Gulf Shores, Alabama: June 2-6, 2001. Contact: AEMC, 348 North McGregor Avenue, Mobile, AL 36608; (334) 460-8000; e-mail: info@aemc.org; WWW: http://www.aemc.org.
Seminar: Developing, Writing, Implementing, Testing, Managing,
Maintaining Your Recovery Plan. Offered by: DisasterRecovery.com Inc.
- Dallas, Texas: June 4-6, 2001
- Orlando, Florida: September 15-16, 2001
- Las Vegas, Nevada: October 22-24, 2001
- Los Angeles, California: November 5-7, 2001
- Washington, D.C.: November, 26-28, 2001
Contact: DisasterRecovery.com Inc., 812 Proctor Avenue, Ogdensburg, NY
13669; 1-800-361-8398; fax: (520) 441-4170; e-mail: phoenix@binomial.com.
Internet Symposium: Dealing with Public Risks Involved in Land Use Planning. Host: Public Entity Risk Institute (PERI). The Internet: June 4-8, 2001. See: http://www.riskinstitute.org (click on "Symposium Center") or go directly to: http://www.riskinstitute.org/docs/symposium.html.
Governor's Conference on Emergency Management. Coeur D'Alene, Idaho: June 11-15, 2001. Contact: Idaho Bureau of Disaster Services, 4040 Guard Street, Building 600, Boise, ID 83705; WWW: http://www2.state.id.us/bds/default.htm.
First Asia Pacific Program on Conflict Management (in cooperation with Charles Sturt University, Australia, and Notre Dame University, Philippines, and leading to a Graduate Certificate in Dispute Resolution). Makati City and Cotabato City, Mindanao, Philippines: June 11-22, 2001. Contact: John W. Barrett, Chief Executive Officer, Asia Pacific Disaster Management Centre (APDMC), Manila, Philippines; tel: (632) 817-1434; fax: (632) 817-0894; e-mail: barrettjohn@optusnet.com.au or profdevt@nsclub.net; WWW: http://www.apdmc.com.
Asia-Pacific Conference on Early Warning, Prevention, Preparedness, and Management of Disasters in Food and Agriculture. Chiangmai, Thailand: June 12-15, 2001. Contact: Mr. T.C. Ti, Senior Food Systems Economist, FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, Thailand; e-mail: tc.ti@fao.org.
Seminar on Issues in Earthquake Engineering. Host: European School for Advanced Studies in Reduction of Seismic Risk (ROSE). Pavia, Italy: June 25-26, 2001. Contact: Rose School Secretariat, Collegio Alessandro Volta, Via Ferrata, 27100, Pavia, Italy; tel: +39 0382 548735; fax: +39 0382 528422; e-mail: rose@unipv.it; WWW: http://spadino.unipv.it/rose.html.
Multihazard Building Design Summer Institute. Offered by: Federal
Emergency Management Agency, Emergency Management Institute. Emmitsburg,
Maryland: July 23-27, 2001 (flood and wind mitigation design); July 30-
August 3, 2001 (earthquake and dam safety design). Contact: Joe Bills,
National Emergency Training Center, 16825 South Seton Avenue, Emmitsburg,
MD 21727; e-mail: joseph.bills@fema.gov; WWW:
http://www.fema.gov/emi/mbdsi3.htm.
(NOTE: FEMA's Emergency Management Institute offers numerous residential
courses throughout the year at the National Emergency Training Center in
Emmitsburg, Maryland. For a complete list, see the EMI web page:
http://www.fema.gov/emi/train.htm.
Dam Safety, Operation, and Maintenance: An International Technical Seminar and Study Tour. Denver, Colorado; Salt Lake City, Utah; and Las Vegas, Nevada: August 13-23, 2001. Contact: Leanna Principe, D-1520, U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, P.O. Box 25007, Denver, CO 80225; (303) 445-2127; fax: (303) 445-6322; e-mail: lprincipe@do.usbr.gov; WWW: http://www.usbr.gov/international/trn_international.html.
New Mexico Emergency Management Association Annual Conference. Ruidoso, New Mexico: August 20-23, 2001. Contact: New Mexico Emergency Management Association, (505) 258-5445; fax: (505) 258-3017; e-mail: tchavez@zianet.com.
Governor's Annual Emergency Management Conference. Breckenridge, Colorado: August 28-29, 2001. Contact: Stephanie Meetze, Colorado Office of Emergency Management, 15075 South Golden Road, Golden, CO 80401-3979; (303) 273-1622; fax: (303) 273-1795; e-mail: stephanie.meetze@state.co.us.
Illinois Statewide Emergency Management Conference. Springfield, Illinois: September 5-6, 2001. Illinois Emergency Management Agency, 110 East Adams Street, Springfield, IL 62701-1109; (217) 782-2700; fax: (217) 524-7967; e-mail: gfelchner@iema.state.il.us.
First International Conference on River Basin Management. Organized by: Wessex Institute of Technology. Cardiff, Wales, U.K.; September 11-13, 2001. Contact: Susan Hanley, Conference Secretariat, River Basin Management 2001, Wessex Institute of Technology, Ashurst Lodge, Ashurst, Southampton, SO40 7AA, U.K; fax: 44 (0) 238 029 2853; e-mail: shanley@wessex.ac.uk; WWW: http://www.wessex.ac.uk/conferences/2001.
13th International Disaster Recovery Symposium and Exhibition. Host: Disaster Recovery Journal. Orlando, Florida: September 16-19, 2001. Contact: DRJ Registrar, P.O. Box 510110, St. Louis, MO 63151; (314) 894-0276; WWW: http://www.drj.com.
XXIX International Association of Hydraulic Engineering and Research (IAHR) Congress. Beijing, China: September 16-21, 2001. Contact: IAHR, P.O. Box 177, 2600 MH Delft, The Netherlands; tel: +31-15-2858819; fax: +31-15-2858417; e-mail: iahr@iahr.nl -or- 2001iahr@iwhr.com; WWW: http://www.2001iahr.iwhr.com.
Kansas Emergency Management Association Annual Conference. Salina, Kansas: September 18-21, 2001. Tel: (316) 364-2721; fax: (316) 364-8643; e-mail: jbeyer@coffeycountyks.org.
River Restoration Workshop. Sponsors: Association of State Floodplain Managers (ASFPM) and New York State Floodplain and Stormwater Managers Association. Albany, New York: September 24-25, 2001. Contact: ASFPM, 2809 Fish Hatchery Road, Suite 204, Madison, WI 53713; (608) 274-0123; e-mail: asfpm@floods.org; WWW: http://www.floods.org.
California Emergency Services Association Annual Conference. Clear Lake, California: September 24-28, 2001. See: http://www.cesa.net.
Association of Engineering Geologists (AEG) and American Institute of Professional Geologists (AIPG) Joint Meeting. St. Louis, Missouri: September 29-October 5, 2001. Contact: AEG, c/o Department of Geology and Geophysics, Texas A&M University, TAMU 3115, College Station, TX 77843- 3115; (979) 845-0142; fax: (979) 862-7959; WWW: http://www.aegweb.org/annual_meetings/2001/.
Earthscope Workshop. Snowbird, Utah: October 10-12, 2001. Earthscope, is a major research initiative proposed by the National Science Foundation Earth Sciences Division to examine in detail the structure and tectonics of North America, including volcano and earthquake hazards. For details, see: http://www.scec.org/instanet/01news/earthscope.html, or contact the Southern California Earthquake Center (SCEC), Department of Earth Sciences, University Park, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0742; (213) 740-5843; fax: (213) 740-0011; e-mail: scec@usc.edu.
Emergency Preparedness Conference. Hosts: British Columbia Ministry for Children and Families, City of Vancouver, Insurance Bureau of Canada, and others. Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada: October 16-18, 2001. Contact: Emergency Preparedness Conference, 700 West 57th Avenue, Vancouver, British Columbia V6P 1S1, Canada: (604) 322-8365; fax: (604) 322-8359; e-mail: mrogan@vanhosp.bc.ca; WWW: http://www.epma.bc.ca/epc/.
Watershed 2002. Sponsors: Water Environment Federation (WEF) and others. Fort Lauderdale, Florida: February 23-27, 2002. Contact: WEF, 601 Wythe Street, Alexandria, VA 22314-1994; (703) 684-2442; fax: (703) 684-2413; WWW: http://www.wef.org.
Solutions to Coastal Disasters 2002. Organizers: Coasts, Oceans, Ports, and Rivers Institute of the American Society of Civil Engineers; Coastal Zone Foundation; and others. San Diego, California: February 24-27, 2002. The four main conference tracks are Coastal Storms, Seismic Effects, Impacts on Climate Change, and Shoreline Change. A call for papers has been issued. Contact: Lesley Ewing, California Coastal Commission, 45 Fremont Street, Suite 2000, San Francisco, CA 94105; (415) 904-5291; fax: (415) 904-5400; e-mail: lewing@coastal.ca.gov -or- Louise Wallendorf, Hydromechanics Laboratory, U.S. Naval Academy, 590 Holloway Road, Annapolis, MD 21402-5042; (410) 293-5108; fax; (410) 293-5848; e-mail: lou@usna.edu; WWW: http://www.asce.org/conferences/cd2002/index.html.
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