• ISD Background

By Stephen Jordan

I had an interesting conversation today with a senior corporate executive. As we wrapped up, she said something that made me realize we really need to clarify that the Institute for Sustainable Development is trying to break through with new concepts that the current frame of talking about community shocks and stresses doesn’t take into account:

   “It’s a shame you focus so much on disasters.”

At ISD, we actually don’t.

Our mission is grounded in the opposite idea: communities shouldn’t have to endure a disaster to get the resources, attention, or leadership they need to become stronger.

What we focus on is community continuity—reducing the harm from future disruptions and strengthening resilience every single day.

Businesses already understand this. They don’t build “Business Emergency Plans.”They build Business Continuity Plans because interruptions cost money, customers, and competitiveness. Continuity is practical. It’s strategic. It’s how organizations stay viable.

Communities deserve the same logic.

The post Why Not Focus on Community Continuity and Continuous Resilience By Stephen Jordan appeared first on Good News!.

HERE NOW TO TALK ABOUT THE DISASTER OUTLOOK FOR THIS SPRING AND HOW THE RED CROSS IS PREPARING TO HELP, IS THE VICE PRESIDENT OF AMERICAN RED CROSS DISASTER PROGRAMS, JENNIFER PIPA.

Website for more information: WWW.RedCross.org

BIO:

Bio:
Jennifer Pipa is Vice President of Disaster Programs for the American Red Cross. Prior to this role, Pipa served as CEO of Georgia’s Red Cross – serving more than 10 million people across all five lives of Red Cross service in 159 counties. Pipa previously served as the Regional Executive for the Red Cross of Central Florida.

#americanredcross #redcross #jenniferpipa #unitedstates #disasterrelief

The post 2024 HAS THE POTENTIAL FOR EXTREME DISASTERS TO UPEND LIVES AND COMMUNITIES ACROSS THE U.S. appeared first on Good News!.

Along with federal emergency agencies, the U.S. Army, with its combat readiness and organizational mobility, responds rapidly to natural and manmade disaster situations at national, state, and local levels.

U.S. Army North (ARNORTH) supports the Department of Defense’s response efforts during wildland fire and hurricane season by deploying on short notice into perilous environments to respond quickly and effectively to protect lives, property, critical infrastructure, and natural and cultural resources.

Did You Know?
 The annual hurricane season in the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico runs 1 June through 30 November, but fire is now a year-round threat, and the number and severity of wildland fires has increased.
 The U.S. military has been an important partner in wildfire suppression since the early 1900s when Army Soldiers served as firefighters in Western U.S.
 2021 was the 40th time that federal military ground forces have been mobilized to support wildland firefighting response efforts.
 Whereas most Army missions involve deploying overseas, ARNORTH is unique in its commitment to serving in the homeland helping protect people, property, and federal lands.

Since 2005, ARNORTH has responded to more than 40 storms including Hurricanes Katrina and Maria and several fire disasters including the 2021 Dixie Fire in California. On August 18th, join MAJ Wesley Todd and 2LT Lane Harwell as they discuss the role of the U.S. Army in disaster relief efforts including wildland fires, hurricanes, and more. Also learn about how Soldiers can serve their country and local communities in times of challenging weather events.

Interview is courtesy: U.S. Army

#hurricanes #flooding #heat #wildfires #storms #soldiers #usarmy #support #weather #land #drought #tornadoes #federal #emergency #naturaldisaster #missions #response #community

The post DEVASTATING FLOODING SUMMER HURRICANES, EXTREME HEAT, WILDFIRES AND STORMS LOOM AS SOLDIERS IN THE U.S. ARMY STEP UP TO SUPPORT COMMUNITIES IN NEED appeared first on Good News!.

Listen to “Resilience 2020, David Dodd” on Spreaker.

March 2-6, 2020, New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Lake Charles
United Nations International Public Private Partnership Center of Excellence Comes to Louisiana
Television Interviews with Presenters and Key Participants
for local Television Stations
This is a private event, produced by the International Sustainable Resilience Center (SDRC), is not open to the public. We are offering live interviews to local television stations in each city during this unique, international event, featuring working sessions with the United Nations International Public Private Partnership Center of Excellence (ICoE) and twelve regional organizations that work with Louisiana businesses involved in larger public projects around the state, along with eight specialist centers working under the direction of the ICoE, including centers from Portugal, Spain, France, Lebanon, Hong Kong, Beijing, and Tokyo, who will hold sessions together in bringing knowledge of “people first” public private partnerships to enhance resilience and provide for robust infrastructure in Louisiana.
We will have an experienced broadcast crew at the event that will be recording interviews. Your station can simply provide a reporter and we will give you a copy of the interview when it is completed. If you wish, you can set up a remote broadcast in front of the venue to provide additional coverage.
Regional organizations in Louisiana taking part in the working sessions include:
• Port of South Louisiana
• Louisiana Economic Development
• Committee of 100
• World Trade Center New Orleans
• University of Louisiana System
• Tulane Bywater Institute
• Water Institute of the Gulf
• Baton Rouge Area Chamber
• Greater New Orleans, Inc.
• New Orleans Business Alliance
• South Louisiana Economic Council
• Southwest Louisianan Economic Development Alliance

The event is being coproduced by the International Sustainable Resilience Center (ISRC), one of the eight specialist centers of excellence that will be convening in New Orleans, Baton Rouge and Lake Charles from March 2nd to 6th, 2020.
The ISRC, is headquartered in New Orleans and will be your point of contact for this event. Bruce May, Chief Content Officer for the ISRC, will coordinate any activity between your station, the event and the on-site production company (Dynamic Global Media).
This is a private event and is closed to the public. Please keep information about the event under embargo until the first day of the sessions (March 2nd, 2020).
A press release about the event is attached which is under embargo until March 2nd, 2020.
Contact Bruce May to make arrangements for covering the event.
For Network Television and Broadcast Information, contact:
Bruce May
Chief Content Officer
International Sustainable Resilience Center
bruce@hbmayco.com
936-242-9264

EMBARGO until:
Release March 2nd, 2020
Resilience 2020
March 2-6, 2020, New Orleans, Baton Rouge

THE WHO
The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe International Public Private Partnership Center of Excellence (ICoE) and its’ affiliated Specialist Center for Disaster Resilience and Recovery, the International Sustainable Resilience Center (ISRC) are coproducing a first of its kind ever event in Louisiana. ISRC is one of eight specialist centers of excellence that will be convening in New Orleans, Baton Rouge and Lake Charles from March 2nd to 6th, 2020. ISRC, headquartered in New Orleans, will welcome centers based in Portugal, Spain, France, Lebanon, Hong Kong, Beijing, and Tokyo who will hold sessions together in bringing knowledge of “people first” public private partnerships to enhance resilience and provide for robust infrastructure in Louisiana.
These centers have realized that the value of their work could be leveraged by acting together and have chosen Louisiana as the location for a pilot project that can be replicated worldwide. The ICoE , a unit of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe division of Economic Cooperation and trade will also attend, and will be represented by its chief Geoffrey Hamilton and Chief Tony Bonnici. Both have committed to assist Louisiana in any way possible regarding trade and foreign direct investment as well.
THE WHAT
This spring thought leaders from all around the globe will gather in three key Louisiana cities to make connections and brainstorm ways to improve our state’s ability to enter into public private partnerships that will work for everyone.
Co-produced by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe and the International Sustainable Resilience Center based in New Orleans, this first-of-its-kind ever event will feature experts from France, Spain, Portugal, Lebanon, Hong Kong, China, Japan, and the U.S.
Sessions will center around “people first” public private partnerships in the following areas, with all focusing on the overriding importance of resilience:
• Transportation
• Water and Sanitation
• Smart, Sustainable Cities
• Ports
• Law and Policy
• Local/Regional Governance
• Disaster Resilience and Recovery
HOST ORGANIZATIONS
This event is very fortunate to have leading organizations as hosts, each of which has pledged their support. Hosts include:
— Port of South Louisiana
— Louisiana Economic Development
— Committee of 100 for Economic Development
— Water Institute of the Gulf
— World Trade Center New Orleans
— University of Louisiana System
— Greater New Orleans, Inc.
— Baton Rouge Area Chamber of Commerce
— Southwest Louisianan Economic Development Alliance
— South Louisiana Economic Council
— New Orleans Business Alliance

Leaders of these organizations have granted interviews with event co-producer International Sustainable Resilience Center, available at www.sustainableresiliencetv.com

WHAT’S IN IT
FOR LOUISIANA
There are multiple benefits for Louisiana. Having global expertise in public private partnerships that emphasize transparency inclusion and equity will only help Louisiana’s efforts to become a more resilient and competitive state. Forming relationships with two critical leaders within UNECE can enhance trade and foreign direct investment opportunities. Perhaps most importantly, hosting a visit of this magnitude will set Louisiana apart from every other state in the nation, and lead to worldwide recognition through the 84 nation governing body of the ICoE.

#resilience #david #dodd #bruce #dino #paternostro #may #international #sustainable #center #michael #olivier #transportation #water #louisiana #sanitation #smart #sustainable #disaster #recovery #lee #gary #organizations #france #spain #portugal #lebanon #hong #kong #china #japan #us #united #states #economic #cooperation #new #orleans

The post Resilience 2020 appeared first on Good News!.

Much still needs to be done, so please send contributions earmarked for Katrina to either our Good News Corporation or the Salvation Army.

Peace and love is the answer plus caring for Mother Earth, as it was the environment and water level that caused the Katrina disaster.

As we know you are a Do Gooder, please join us for our www.peacedayparty.org events, on September 16th Times Square and the 18th in Central Park Bandshell.

Peace and Love

The post Katrina 11th Anniversary Remembered with Love appeared first on Good News!.

On Monday, October 22, 2012 amidst the sophisticated, ruby red décor of Crimson, firefighters stepped out of their firehouses and into the spotlight to take home big honors for their incredible cooking talent at our 11^th Annual Iron Skillet® Cook Off.  You may be familiar with culinary competitions like Food Network’s Chopped or televised throwdowns between professional chefs, but the Iron Skillet® Cook Off differentiates itself from the pack of culinary competitions by focusing on the camaraderie, spirited brotherhood, and jovial nature of the firehouse cooking clan.  And it comes across in the food.  At the competition, five firehouse chefs were matched up with five top restaurant chefs to see who could make the most crowd-pleasing dish of the night.  The firehouse chefs supplied the original recipe and the professional chefs were charged with reinventing it, making it better (if they dared).  The winners of the night were everywhere – in the chef coats, in the sponsor booths, and on stage.  Everyone who came added to the lighthearted, but heartfelt spirit of the night.  The smells and sights of the dishes – fried chicken with sweet potato waffles, skirt steak with burgundy cream sauce, and smothered pork chops – permeated the restaurant with an intoxicating breeze that we swear could be smelled throughout the five boroughs.

At World Cares Center we’ve managed to pull off the impossible:  to host a night filled with sumptuous food and jovial spirits that reenergizes our serious mission of providing training in emergency preparedness for emergency managers, community leaders, and concerned citizens.  This evening would not have been possible without the connection between the emergency response community, our corporate sponsors, and the everyday heroes that came out to support us.  For this one night, we saw the wonderful dichotomy of the firefighter spirit.  Two sides of the same coin:  the ever-present professional emergency responder and the lighthearted, spirited community member.  As Lisa Orloff, Founder and Executive Director of World Cares Center put it, “the Iron Skillet® Cook Off represents what we see in any crisis situation, people of all walks of life coming together to do good.  The event is a celebration, in disaster response it is the visceral goodness in people that World Cares center ensures is applied in a safe, effective and coordinated manner.”

A Tribute to Everyday Heroes

The night was a tribute to the everyday hero.  Queens Council member Peter F. Vallone Jr. and his two brothers, Perry Vallone and Paul Vallone, were honored for their quick thinking and ready response in saving two young girls in rough waters off Long Branch, NJ.  The award was given among their peers – a room full of heroes that demonstrated their unwavering commitment to emergency preparedness and effective training for emergency response.

It’s telling that the top chef of the night, Iron Skillet® champion Khalid Baylor from Ladder 14 in Manhattan, made a dish that comforts the soul as much as it tempts the palate.  Chef Baylor’s Lemongrass Fried Chicken with Sweet Potato Waffles and a Peach Schnapps Compote caused the crowd to sigh with a collective southern swoon that comes from food that truly satisfies.   To win, Chef Baylor took a heaping spoon of southern roots, a cup of grandma’s cooking wisdom, and a pinch of love for baking, and put it all into a spectacular dish that had guests begging for more.  Second place went to firefighter Pete Lazarcheck from Engine 291 in Queens for his Skirt Steak with Burgundy Cream Sauce.  Pete’s restaurant competitor, Matt Gibson from Legends Hospitality at Yankee Stadium, took third place for his rendition of the skirt steak dish.

Celebrity Judges Bring the Sparkle & Sizzle

Rounding out the night was a raucous live auction that included hilarious commentary by our guest judges who acted as auctioneers.  Ben Aaron, an NBC Universal reporter, got the crowd in a bidding war over the auction’s choice items including sports memorabilia, international trips, and entertainment packages.  Our panel of celebrity judges included radio/television personality Valerie Smaldone, who served as emcee for the night, Council member Peter J. Vallone Jr., WPIX 11 reporter Sukanya Krishnan, Former NHL player (New Jersey Devils) Grant Marshall, NBC Universal reporter Ben Aaron, WNYC Radio host Soterios Johnson, former NFL player (NY Jets) Freeman McNeil, Former NFL player (Washington Redskins) Thomas Huff, NBC 4 consumer reporter Lynda Baquero, and NFL player (NY Giants) Stevie Brown.  Restaurant owner and chef, Adrianne Calvo was a celebrity guest chef providing tasty nibbles for the crowd throughout the night.

As returning judge Sukanya Krishnan said on her WPIX 11 morning show, “I’ve had the privilege of serving as a judge for the competition and let me tell you the food is fantastic, the people are wonderful and it all goes for an organization that’s really making a difference.”  Each year, the competitors manage to put more love, more flavor, and more life into their cooking.  We thank all our firehouse and restaurant chefs, our generous corporate sponsors, our celebrity guests, and our volunteers for an incredible night of spectacular food and exceptional company.  The proceeds from the event will help us continue to provide the best in emergency and disaster training, helping to empower leaders and volunteers to become ready responders.  See you all next year for our 12^th annual Iron Skillet® Cook Off!

The post Firefighter Chefs Step into the Spotlight, appeared first on Good News!.

For the full story, go to http://goodnewsplanet.com/habitat-for-humanity-emergency-housing-update/

The post Kip Scheidler appeared first on Good News!.

Habitat for Humanity’s first-ever fleet of 24 Habitat Mobile Response Units is en-route from Atlanta to assist communities in New York and New Jersey recovering from Hurricane Sandy. Donated by Chevrolet, the vans that will be specially outfitted with tools and equipment donated by Lowe’s and Bosch in Charlotte, N.C., on their way to the New York metro area. With winter upon us and many families in need of help, these response units will facilitate Habitat efforts in communities affected by Hurricane Sandy.

Habitat’s “Repair. Rebuild. Restore.” effort to assist in the long-term recovery of communities affected by Hurricane Sandy is underway and will provide families in need with critical home repairs, rehabilitations /reconstruction, weatherization and new construction. Upon its arrival, the Habitat fleet will immediately be put into service in Staten Island, N.Y., and Union Beach, N.J., where volunteers will be working to help rebuild affected communities. On Thursday, the mobile response units will be deployed to a dozen Habitat affiliates in the greater New York metropolitan area to carry out extensive clean-up and repair efforts.

Kip Scheidler, Sr. Director of Habitat for Humanity International’s Disaster Response, is available for interviews next Tuesday to discuss the new Mobile Response Units and Habitat’s ongoing recovery efforts in the Northeast U.S. Following the storm, Habitat for Humanity International launched a multi-phase response to help affected communities. For more info, visit www.habitat.org.

The post Habitat for Humanity: EMERGENCY HOUSING UPDATE appeared first on Good News!.