11^TH^ ANNUAL FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT HIGHER EDUCATION CONFERENCE

JUNE 2-5, 2008

THE STUDY OF DISASTER RESILIENCE IN ACADEMIC PROGRAMS:

FROM INFUSIVE TO COMPREHENSIVE

1^st^ Round of Wednesday, June 4^th^ Afternoon Breakout Session

**Moderator**

**Panel**

Gigi Berardi, Ph.D., MS

<Gigi.berardi@wwu.edu>

Interim Director

Institute for Global and Community Resilience

Western Washington University

Rebekah Green, Ph.D.

rebekah.green@wwu.edu

Research Associate and Grant Writer

Institute for Global and Community Resilience

Western Washington University

John J. Kiefer, Ph.D.

<jkiefer@uno.edu>

Assistant Professor of Public Administration and Political Science

University of New Orleans

THE STUDY OF DISASTER RESILIENCE IN ACADEMIC PROGRAMS:

FROM INFUSIVE TO COMPREHENSIVE

Prepared by:

Barbara A. Hinke

<bahinke@sbcglobal.net>

MPA with concurrent Graduate certificate in Emergency Management
Homeland Security Student

American Military University

**[What is Disaster Resilience]{.underline}**

Disaster resilience ("bouncing back" that reflects its Latin root
'resiliere), as some academics would define it, is the ability of social
units (e.g., organizations, communities) to mitigate hazards, contain
the effects of disasters, and carry out recovery activities in ways that
minimize social disruption, while also mitigating the effects of future
disasters. Consequently, strength, flexibility, and the ability to cope
with and overcome extreme challenges, are the hallmark of
disaster-resilient communities.

![](media/image1.png){width="1.5416666666666667in" height="1.0in"}

> **Resilience is represented by the red triangle above. When disasters
> strikes (t), damage to critical infrastructure results in diminished
> performance. Over time, infrastructure is restored to its original
> functionality: Four "R's" -- Robustness, Redundancy, Resourcefulness,
> and Rapidity -- represent the fundamental properties of Disaster
> Resilience. (MCEER 2006)**

In addition to the aforementioned properties of resilience, MCEER's
framework includes the following Dimensions of Resilience. These can be
used to help quantify measures of resilience for various types of
physical and organizational systems.

• **Technical --** the ability of physical systems (including all
interconnected components) to perform to acceptable/desired levels when
subject to disaster;

•**Organizational --** the capacity of organizations -- especially those
managing critical facilities and disaster-related functions -- to make
decisions and take actions that contribute to resilience;

•**Social --** consisting of measures specifically designed to lessen
the extent of the disaster-stricken communities and governmental
jurisdictions suffer negative consequences due to loss of critical
services due to disaster; and

•**Economic --** the capacity to reduce both direct and indirect
economic losses resulting from disasters.

The performance of Technical and Organizational systems impacts a
community's Social and Economic systems in times of disaster. For
example, loss of electrical power (Technical) will negatively impact the
way of life of community residents (Social) and businesses (Economic).
Thus, resilience objectives for Technical and Organizational dimensions
should result in specific tasks that improve performance in each of
these dimensions, thereby lessening negative impacts on communities.
Likewise, Social and Economic performance measures can be defined that
improve a community's ability to withstand and recover rapidly from
disaster.

![](media/image2.png){width="5.997222222222222in"
height="4.6305555555555555in"}

(Mayunga, J., July 2007)

**[Growing need for Disaster/Community Resilience Academic
Programs]{.underline}**

Experts predict that the United States will continue to experience an
increase in the severity, and perhaps number of, critical incidents
(Cutter 2006, IPCC).Earthquakes,

tsunamis, tornados, wildfire, drought, contagious disease and terrorist
events regularly occupy headline news. "Every year, natural and
technological hazards in the United States cost an estimated \$1 billion
per week in the form of lives lost and public and private properties
destroyed. (OSTP 2005). "In 2004 and 2005, approximately 2,000 U.S.
citizens lost their lives due to hurricanes" (NSB Task Force, 2007) The
Spatial Hazard Events and Losses Database (SHELDUS) indicates a pattern
of elevating losses (Cutter 2006). In response, states, localities,
agencies, nongovernmental organizations (NGO's), and businesses have
been augmenting their disaster preparedness plans to prepare for these
significant challenges to sustainability.

The first published disaster-related scientific work was Price's (1920)
dissertation on the explanation of the munitions laden SS Mont Blanc in
Halifax harbor that killed over 2000 people. Since then, a significant
body of scientific knowledge has developed. From a recent review of the
literature, the National Academy of Sciences (NAS, 2006) concludes,
"there is a solid knowledge base, at the household level, on
vulnerability assessment, risk communication, evacuation and other forms
of protective action."

Emmy Werner was one of the first scientists to use the term 'resilience'
in 1970s. She studied a cohort of children from Kauai (Hawaiian
Islands). Two-thirds of the children had a difficult/destructive adult
life coming from alcohol and dysfunctional house holds, yet one third
coming from the same environment did not exhibit destructive behaviors.
She named the latter group resilient.

**[Continued Effort for a Higher Education]{.underline}**

The annual Emergency Higher Education Project Conferences (FEMA,
Emergency Management Institute, (EMI)) was held on the grounds of the
National Emergency Training Center (NETC) in Emmitsburg, Maryland. Just
as with the current NRF (National Response Framework) it was upgraded,
revised and implemented in March 2008, to a point of addressing a NSI
(National Significant Incident) from the existing NRP (National Response
Plan) which was revised in 2004-2005.

One of the goals of these conferences is to bring to the attending
members their existing knowledge, in addition to contemporary and up to
the minute methods that have been resourceful and ground breaking
towards advancement with their existing hazard, disaster, emergency
management or homeland security academic programs in place at their
respective college or university. Additionally to enhance and promote
inter-school exchange of ideas and channels of communication related to
the many issues involving hazard, disaster, emergency management higher
education; as well as share pioneering capabilities from the
participating universities and colleges; injecting new life into
existing foundations of this ever growing Project.

Gigi Berardi, the Interim Director of the Institute for Global and
Community Resilience, which is part of WWU (Western Washington
University) Huxley's College of the Environment, has embarked on this
comparatively new subject matter that has been added to college and
universities curriculum nationwide. In order to choose a course relating
to 'Disaster Resilience' as offered by IGCR, it is of great benefit to
fully understand the concept in the academic, research and policy
programs, as there seems to be a limited theoretical understanding of
this concept (Mayunga, 2007). To combat a critical challenge of this
concept (i.e., how to define and develop indicators that can adequately
measure this concept or, how this concept should be mapped and what
units of analysis should be used).

Ms. Berardi states the **mission** of IGCR is to facilitate scholarship,
education and practice on reducing social and physical vulnerability
through **sustainable community** **development**, as a way to minimize
loss and enhance recovery from disasters in Washington State and its
interdependent global communities.............and in seeking to
integrate disaster risk reduction and sustainable development we focus
on five key areas:

≈ Community Recovery

≈ Hazard Mitigation

≈ Food Security

≈ Social Vulnerability

≈ Risk Analysis and Communication

One of the more difficult topics to address during this session was the
handling or mis-handling of the Katrina hurricane. It was noted that
Florida had five (5) hurricanes that or the following season, with no
comparison as to its recovery response from the local level on up. It
was established that Katrina was not the first major destructive
hurricane that this country has encountered. Why then, are there still
over 23,000 temporary housing units still occupied by disaster victims
in the Gulf coast. It was agreed by all in attendance that if a
Community Resilience Program was in effect, the entire disastrous event
would not have played out as it did; that's including the ignoring of
the evacuation as this event began to unfold. This is in a geographical
area where hurricanes have a history of reaching and causing damage more
times than not. One of the remarks made was, "Wonder if the question of
the quality of life in the hardest hit area had anything to do with the
response?" That is a very difficult question to put forward, yet for an
area not new to this type of natural potential disaster, one does
wonder.

If this writer were in a position to recommend or issue training topics
to every local, state and federal level of personnel that has been
tapped to handle natural and man-made disasters in the country, Disaster
Resilience would be at the top of the list for a requirement. It engages
an individual to look at the glass half full rather than half empty. It
brings with you the attitude, emotional stableness and positive
concentration to address the affected area of trauma back to its
original, or perhaps better, status; prior to the adversity which was
encountered, and in an expeditious manner.

It was interesting to note, that one of the presenters, Dr. Rebekah
Green, wrote words to the affect of what this writer benefited from the
Conference on the whole, throughout the week. The session encompassed
topics and subject matter that extended beyond the normal areas of
interest in order to respond to a disaster efficiently - with
proficiency. Noting paraphrasing may cloud her thoughts, here are her
own words:

................I have spent the week at the FEMA Higher Education
Conference at the National Emergency Management Institute. While
emergency management and the four phases of disaster (mitigation,
preparedness, response and recovery) are a part of what we teach and
research at the IGRC, it is not everything. It was clear that the
emergency management field is focused on management, tactics and
coordination. All are important aspects of disaster reduction. Yet,
aspects of sustainable planning, strategizing, and integrated
vulnerability reduction are not top agenda items......especially with
Department of Homeland Security's dictates of a heavy focus on
terrorism.

Being somewhat on the margins of the conference focus is always a
fascinating position. This time I was struck (again) with the underlying
oxymoron present in the FEMA mandate. On one hand, the average resident
understands FEMA's role as the knight on a white stallion, the cavalry,
the agency that is going to sweep and save them from a catastrophic
event. Of course, Katrina greatly tarnished this image, but the
expectation remains. On the other hand, one of FEMA's missions is to
promote disaster preparedness. This promoting of preparedness requires a
host of risk education and risk communications activities, many of which
require FEMA to say there is risk, that people are unsafe, and that
people need to DO SOMETHING to prepare themselves'. The implicit and
unintended message underneath it all is, "We're the cavalry, but we
can't really do our job, so you need to prepare yourself."
[http://resilience.wwu.edu](http://resilience.wwu.edu/) (Bounceback).

**[REFERENCES]{.underline}**

Boteler, Franklin E. 12-2007. Journal of Extension. *Building
Disaster-Resilient Families, Communities, and Businesses.* Volume 45
Number 6 Article Number 6FEA1

Chang, Stephanie E. 8-2004. Earthquake Spectra. *Measuring Improvements
in the Disaster Resilience of Communities.* Volume 20 Issue 3. pp.
739-755

Hill, James E., Ph.D. 2006. Regional Disaster Resilience: Guide for
Developing an Action Plan. *The Infrastructure Security Partnership
(TIPS)* pp. 6-25

Mayunga, Joseph S., 2007. Understanding and Applying the Concept of
Community Disaster Resilience: A Capital-based approach. *Megacities:
Social vulnerability and resilience building.* Munich., Germany.

MCEER's Resilience Framework. 2006. Resilience Concept Drives
Development of New Knowledge, Tools and Technologies. *Framework id
Foundation for Disaster Resilience for Organizations & Communities.*
[http://mceer.buffalo.edu](http://mceer.buffalo.edu/)