Stop Disasters!
If you’ve caught yourself shaking your head at the latest building failures, evacuation follies, or general ill-preparedness for disasters, here’s a chance to do it your way. Stop Disasters!, an addictive game created by the UN International Strategy for Disaster Reduction, lets you pick from various disaster scenarios such as earthquake, tsunami, and wildfire. With a limited budget to build safely, get prepared, and communicate, it’s up to you to keep your city safe when disaster strikes.
MapTogether
Whether you’re looking for a slick way to illustrate an evacuation route or trying to visualize vulnerable populations in a pandemic, mapping technology can be invaluable—but small nonprofits rarely have a cartographer on the payroll. That’s where MapTogether comes in with free training, software, and other resources. Check out their site for examples of how their tools can be applied to public safety, disaster preparedness, and relief efforts.
QuakeSmart
Before an earthquake rocks their bottom line, QuakeSmart will help companies reinforce their business plans against disaster. Part of a FEMA Mitigation Directorate project to get communities back on their feet after disaster, QuakeSmart offers companies resources to analyze risk, keep employees safe, and join the preparedness conversation.
Making the Most of Social Media
Okay, you can’t take it any more—you’re ready to set your local government up on Twitter, Facebook, and RSS just to get the social media worshippers off your back. Before you do, take a moment to read Making the Most of Social Media: Seven Lessons from Successful Cities. The University of Pennsylvania’s Fels Institute of Government examined governments using social media and condensed that information into a handy guide for any organization about to dip its toes into this vast sea.
Heritage Preservation’s Risk Evaluation and Planning Program
This site is the result of a recent program that tried to determine how risk evaluation coupled with preparedness measures might keep cultural and historic artifacts safe during disaster. Having determined that risk evaluation is an important first step in emergency planning for cultural institutions, Heritage Preservation has shared the information—including lessons learned, tools and tips, and project news—on a page dedicated to the effort.