Building Disaster Resilient
Places: Asset Mapping and
Data Collection Before A Crisis
Deborah Tootle
Community & Economic Development
Overview
•
•
•
•
Introduction to disasters
Vulnerability and resilience
Why asset mapping?
Vulnerability assessment and asset
identification
• Pulling it all together
Overview
•
•
•
•
Introduction to disasters
Vulnerability and resilience
Why asset mapping?
Vulnerability assessment and asset
identification
• Pulling it all together
Introduction to Disasters
• What is a disaster?
Introduction
• What is a disaster?
– A disaster is generally the result of a natural
catastrophic event, a technological or human
caused incident that results in severe property
damage, multiple injuries or death.
– A disaster also disrupts socioeconomic
processes and conditions in the affected area.
Disaster Management Cycle
Mitigation and Prevention
• Efforts to reduce loss of life and property
by reducing impacts of disasters
• Usually refers to physical or structural
activities or approaches – such as
developing or implementing building codes
Mitigation and Prevention
• Efforts to reduce loss of life and property
by reducing impacts of disasters
• Usually refers to physical or structural
activities or approaches – such as
developing or implementing building codes
What are some
examples of
mitigation?
Preparedness
Wide array of protective
activities at all levels:
• Federal
• State
• Local
• Organizational
• Family
• Individual
Preparedness – Individual and
Family Level
• Examples include family plans, emergency
contacts lists, emergency kits, “bug-out
kits”
• Critical component of community recovery
• Hierarchy of needs – until individuals and
families are safe, community business will
not be “as usual”.
Preparedness – Organizational
Continuity Plans
• Planning and implementing plans are key
elements of preparedness in any level.
• All organizations should have
organizational continuity plans in place.
• Critical for socioeconomic recovery of
place
Preparedness – Organizational
Continuity Plans
• What are organizational continuity plans
and why are they important?
– Roadmap for continuing operations under
adverse conditions
– Consists of analysis, identification of recovery
strategies, planning, implementation, training,
testing, revising
Response
• Immediate actions to reduce physical,
psychological, social and economic
impacts of an incident
• Includes rescue from dangerous
conditions, providing immediate relief in
terms of shelter, food, medical assistance,
financial assistance.
Recovery
• Longer term process for “restoring” social,
economic, structural or financial conditions
in a community
• New normal
• Recovery time depends on extent of
damage and resiliency of community
• Six months to ten years
Disaster and Emergency
Management
• Local, state and national disaster
management organizations have different
roles.
• Roles can differ by state.
First 72 on YOU!
Overview
•
•
•
•
Introduction to disasters
Vulnerability and resilience
Why asset mapping?
Vulnerability assessment and asset
identification
• Pulling it all together
Socioeconomic and Place-Based
Vulnerability
• Factors affecting vulnerability
– Social
– Cultural
– Economic
– Structural
– Environmental
• Why is vulnerability a controversial topic?
Socioeconomic and Place-Based
Vulnerability
• Socioeconomic and demographic
conditions can be very different in different
communities, even within the same state
or region.
• Impacts of disasters will vary according to
how vulnerable places are.
Socioeconomic and Community
Vulnerability: Exercise
• What groups of people in your community
or city are the most vulnerable? Why?
• What organizations? Why?
• What locations? Why?
• We can reduce vulnerability through placebased vulnerability assessments.
Resilience
• What IS resilience?
Resilience
• What IS resilience?
• The National Academies defines resilience
as:
“the ability to prepare and plan for, absorb,
recover from, and more successfully adapt
to adverse events.”
Resilience
“Enhanced resilience allows better
anticipation of disasters and better planning
to reduce disaster losses—rather than
waiting for an event to occur and paying for
it afterward.”
Resilience
Overview
•
•
•
•
Introduction to disasters
Vulnerability and resilience
Why asset mapping?
Vulnerability assessment and asset
identification
• Pulling it all together
Asset Mapping
What is asset
mapping?
Asset Mapping
• An internally focused, relationship based
community development approach.
Asset Mapping:
• Builds upon and uses local capacities,
skills and assets
• Helps to identify skills and talents of local
people
• Helps to locate and engage groups of
volunteers and other organizations
Asset Mapping
• Internal focus does not mean that
additional resources are not needed –
rather, that outside resources will be more
effective if the local community resources
are fully engaged and mobilized.
Kretzman and McKnight. 1993. Building Communities From the Inside Out: A Path Toward Finding
and Mobilizing a Community’s Assets. ACTA Publications. Chicago, IL.
Asset Mapping
• Internal focus critical to restoring
socioeconomic processes and conditions,
especially when first 72 on you.
Overview
•
•
•
•
Introduction to disasters
Vulnerability and resilience
Why asset mapping?
Vulnerability assessment and asset
identification
• Pulling it all together
Vulnerability Assessment: Tools
Social Vulnerability Index for United States
(Susan Cutter) http://webra.cas.sc.edu/hvri/products/sovi.aspx
Vulnerability Assesment: Tools
The CBVA Guidebook:
Community Based
Vulnerability Assessment
A Guide to Engaging Communities in Understanding
Social and Physical Vulnerability to Disasters
Emergency Preparedness Demonstration Project
March 2009
- Is user-friendly and contains
worksheets for each step
- Complements FEMA guidance
- Is designed to engage
communities in the understanding
of social, physical and economic
vulnerabilities to disaster
32
Vulnerability Assessment: Tools
The CBVA Guidebook:
Community Based
Vulnerability Assessment
A Guide to Engaging Communities in Understanding
Social and Physical Vulnerability to Disasters
Emergency Preparedness Demonstration Project
March 2009
- Was developed in FEMA-funded
Emergency Preparedness
Demonstration Project
- Was prepared by MDC, Inc. and UNC
Institute for the Environment in
Chapel Hill, N.C.
- http://www.mdcinc.org/resources/publi
cations/community-basedvulnerability-assessment-guideengaging-communities
33
Community Based Vulnerability
Assessment
Task 1 – Getting Started
- Organize a team that will conduct the assessment
- Start with what you have -- maps, plans, studies, reports
- Identify vulnerable populations
- Assign responsibilities for carrying out assessment
34
Community Based Vulnerability
Assessment
Task 2 – Identify and Rank Hazards
- List different types of hazards that have
occurred or could occur in the community
- Rank each hazard based on the frequency and
severity of risk
35
Community Based Vulnerability
Assessment
Task 3 – Map Areas of Greatest Risk
– Prepare a base map of your community
– Map specific areas vulnerable to disasters:
–
–
–
–
–
Bridges
Hospitals
Roadways that have flooded in the past
Neighborhoods that have flooded
Other important features
36
Community Based Vulnerability
Assessment
Task 4 –Identify and Map Physically Vulnerable People &
Property
– Inventory and map critical facilities located in hazardprone areas
– Estimate the number and value of residential structures
currently located in hazard-prone areas
37
Community Based Vulnerability
Assessment
Task 4 –Identify and Map Physically Vulnerable People &
Property
– Estimate the number of people who live in
these structures
– Estimate future numbers and values of
residential structures that will be located
in hazard-prone areas
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Community Based Vulnerability
Assessment
Task 5 – Identify and Map Socially Vulnerable Populations
- Gather information on number, location, needs, and
capabilities of socially vulnerable people by contacting:
 Non-profits and community foundations
 Faith-based organizations
 Government agencies
- Prepare maps of social vulnerability
39
Community Based Vulnerability
Assessment
Task 6 – Identify and Map Employment Centers
- Prepare list of employment centers in the community
 Include current and future locations
 Estimate the number of employees
- Map location of major employers and highlight those
located in known hazard-prone areas
– Why are employers so important?
40
Community Based Vulnerability
Assessment
Task 7 – Inventory and Map Environmental Threats
– List facilities that handle dangerous substances
– Add these facilities on base map, highlighting those in
hazard-prone areas
– Determine the number of persons that could be at risk
– Rank facilities in order of the severity of threat
41
Community Based Vulnerability
Assessment
Task 8 – Community Ground Truthing and Asset
Identification -- the public forum
- No one knows neighborhoods like people who live there
- Ask them to validate/adjust data collected
- Make preparations for engaging participants in
subsequent planning processes
42
Community Based Vulnerability
Assessment
Task 8.5* – Community Ground Truthing and Asset
Identification -- the public forum
- Begin identification of local assets for addressing
vulnerabilities
 People
 Organizations
- Begin mobilizing local people and organizations in planning
and plan implementation processes
* Not part of MDCs CBVA
*
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Overview
•
•
•
•
Introduction to disasters
Vulnerability and resilience
Why asset mapping?
Vulnerability assessment and asset
identification
• Pulling it all together
Pulling It All Together
Task 9 – Putting it all together
• Combine all data (including asset data)
• Analyze
• Interpret
• Discuss
• Begin planning process
Step 1: Form a
Collaborative
Planning Team
Step 2:
Understand the
Situation
Step 3:
Determine Goals
& Actions
Step 4: Plan
Development
Step 5: Plan
Preparation,
Review, &
Approval
Step 6: Plan
Implementation
& Maintenance
Quick Summary
• Review current emergency management
plans
• Look at SOVI for your county or region
• Conduct your own vulnerability
assessments
Quick Summary
• Ground truth vulnerability assessments
• Identify and begin mobilizing assets
• Make and implement plan
Questions?
For more information:
Deborah Tootle
Community and Economic Development
Iowa State University Extension and Outreach
dmtootle@iastate.edu
Preparatory work for this presentation was supported in part by FEMA,
the Southern Rural Development Center and the many land grant
university colleagues who helped create the ReadyCommunity:
Building Disaster Resilient Communities Curriculum.