Emergency Preparedness and Response
Faith communities are critical partners when a disaster strikes a community. There are many resources available for practical tips, tools and resources to help you prepare for and respond to disasters and emergencies.
Humanitarian Disaster Institute
One of only a few interdisciplinary academic disaster or humanitarian centers in the country, HDI helps the vulnerable and underserved domestically and internationally across a wide spectrum of humanitarian challenges. They equip congregations and faith-based organizations to better prepare for, respond to and recover from disasters.
Preparedness Matters
Informs and educates underserved communities with realistic methods and techniques that will improve their chances of surviving major disasters or every day emergencies.Their website has a great online eFaith Preparedness package that was designed to provide faith institutions with the tools necessary to create a culture of preparedness in the communities they serve.
Jewish Community Emergency Resliency Team (JCERT)
The Jewish Community Emergency Resiliency Team, also known as J-CERT, exists to help support Jewish organizations and communities in responding to, handling and recovering from crises. With a mission of keeping organizations’ key stakeholders – its staff members, clients and visitors – as safe as possible while in our care, J-CERT is designed to help organizations be proactive in their emergency planning or “readiness.”
The Ismaili Center
National Ismaili Councils partner with Focus Humanitarian Assistance to run “Disaster Preparedness Weeks” around the world. This site has practical tips and resources for families to raise awareness of the regional risks and how to prepare for them.
Ready.gov
The main governmental information point for emergency preparation. Get a kit, Make a Plan, Be Informed.
FEMA Faith-Based Community of Practice
This website is a great one-stop-shop for Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Response resources. Toolkits, videos, planning guides, etc. It also features a discussion board where Community of Practice members can share resources, ideas and concerns with each other.
Click here for a recorded webinar: Resources to Help Prepare Houses of Worship for Emergencies
American Public Health Association Get Ready Campaign
APHA’s Get Ready campaign can help you learn simple steps to help protect you, your family and your community.
- Preparedness fact sheets – Earthquakes, floods, power outages and more
- Building an emergency stockpile – What to store and how to maintain it over time
- Q&A with the expert – What ”shelter in place” means and how to be prepared
- Blog posting on tsunamis – Are we at risk in the United States?
Ministering in the Midst of a Natural Disaster
What a youth worker learned about how to respond when a disaster strikes.
Church World Service
Learn how to create Emergency Clean Up Buckets, Hygiene Kits, School Kits and other supply packages that can help those in need in a time of disaster or emergency in your local communities and around the world. They also have archived webinars on many topics related to disaster response.
McLean County Health Department Preparedness Game
MCHD created a simple game to play with children to help them understand Emergency Preparedness. The game could be used in school, day care, religious education class, or any other setting where children gather. Learn how to play the game!
Self Care for Disaster Volunteers
In this video, Presbyterian Disaster Assistance explores how volunteers can take care of themselves when they are offering help and care during disasters.
