ABSTRACT
Decades of research and professional experience point to the value of involving the public in disaster planning as a method of increasing the extent to which individuals are able to prepare for, survive, and recover from disasters. In light of this understanding and in part as a response to criticism after Hurricane Katrina, FEMA developed a framework called the Whole Community Approach to Emergency Management, which provides principles, themes, and guidance for local emergency managers seeking to engage the public in efforts to enhance local resiliency. The Whole Community Framework and related materials such as the Local Mitigation Planning Handbook are welcomed advances in emergency management practice, however there is still much room for improvement. In fact, recent studies have discovered that local emergency managers still do not meaningfully involve the public, especially their most vulnerable constituents, in disaster planning efforts. This chapter describes the Emergency Demonstration Program (EPD) model, a more bottom-up approach to involving the public in disaster planning programs that resulted greater awareness of local disaster risk, broad public support for strategies identified in the plan, and more support emergency managers to carry out duties. The chapter calls for emergency managers to become better community organizers to increase community resilience.
