Bridging the Digital Divide: Advancing Equity for Rural Communities

Explore innovative strategies for increasing digital access and adoption in rural communities. This webinar will highlight practical solutions to bridge the digital divide, ensuring equitable access to broadband and empowering underserved communities—including rural entrepreneurs, veterans, minority-owned businesses, and those from low- to moderate-income backgrounds. Hear from leading experts and practitioners driving innovation in digital inclusion to foster economic opportunity and mobility.

oin ACL for a webinar focused on the significant impact of extreme winter weather on older adults and people with disabilities and the need for inclusive preparedness, response, and recovery measures.

During this webinar, attendees will hear from an expert panel including representatives from the disability and aging networks at the national, state, and regional levels. The webinar discussion will highlight the importance of accessible resources, evacuation planning, and strategies to ensure critical services are available and inclusive before, during, and after extreme winter events.

Extreme winter weather impacts older adults and individuals with disabilities disproportionately due to several factors associated with health, mobility, and access to resources.

For older adults, colder temperatures increase the risk of conditions like hypothermia and frostbite because aging bodies often have reduced circulation and lower body fat, making it more difficult to effectively regulate body temperature. Additionally, memory impairments may prevent them from taking necessary precautions, such as dressing warmly or seeking heating assistance during storms.

For individuals with disabilities, physical limitations can increase exposure risks and hinder the ability to seek shelter quickly or avoid hazards like icy walkways. Limited transportation options may make it challenging to reach warming centers or other safe locations, and there may be barriers to accessible emergency resources. Many people with disabilities rely on medical equipment dependent on electricity, which may become unusable during winter power outages. This can be life-threatening if outages are prolonged.

Furthermore, chronic health issues that impact people with disabilities and older adults, such as diabetes or thyroid problems, may affect the heart or blood flow, impairing the body’s ability to stay warm. (Taking medications for common conditions may have the same effect.)

A Q&A session will follow the panelists’ presentations.

The RNPN’s Resilience Exchange series offers monthly learning sessions on a specific subject to share knowledge and advance conversations around a particular area of natural hazard resilience. These hourlong, virtual events are open to all! This event will be cohosted by RNPN, the FEMA Individual Assistance Division’s Voluntary Agency Liaisons, and the DHS Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships to provide information to partner networks on collaborating with philanthropic organizations, such as the Center for Disaster Philanthropy, to support individuals and communities impacted by disasters. The event strives to foster partnership opportunities to expand capacity and facilitate solution-oriented exchanges among partners.

“Prediction, not narration, is the real test of our understanding of the world.” ― Nassim Nicholas Taleb, The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Improbable We live in a time of uncertainty. Our world is undergoing a transformative journey in an era of technological advancements and global challenges. Disasters are constant, as is the harm they cause. Funders must understand that a better future is possible. In “The Black Swan,” Taleb challenges his readers not to look at past events, including disasters, to develop plans but to imagine what could be. As much as they may feel random at times, disasters have a level of predictability that allows funders to be strategic rather than reactive in their grantmaking. One week after the federal election, join philanthropic futurist Trista Harris from FutureGood and CDP’s Chief Financial and Operation Officer, Brenda Camacho, for our last scheduled webinar of 2024. They will discuss where current trends are headed and how we can build the future we want to see for ourselves, our sector and our communities.

The impact of Hurricanes Helene and Milton, which hit Florida two weeks apart, went well beyond the catastrophe from the storms. Communities along the Gulf Coast and southeastern U.S. felt the devastating impact of Helene and Milton and the so-called “secondary perils,” smaller events such as storm surge, tornadoes, heavy rain and flash flooding. As secondary perils begin to cause as much or more loss and destruction as the hurricanes themselves, and as disaster after disaster hits the same communities, funders need to adjust their disaster-giving strategies. During this webinar, our speakers will discuss how climate change is upending traditional disaster philanthropy and creating an opportunity for funders to rethink and adapt to the changing environment.

By the end of this webinar, donors will:

  • Understand the risks that communities now face due to climate change.
  • Be aware of the cumulative impact of multiple disasters on individuals and communities.
  • Learn about the intersections and layered impacts of climate change and disasters on marginalized communities.
  • Consider ways they can adjust their planning and grantmaking to account for the new realities of disasters.

In today’s climate, the potential for civil unrest and First Amendment demonstrations has become a growing concern for businesses, nonprofits, and faith-based organizations. These events can disrupt operations, damage property, and negatively impact a community’s reputation.

This webinar will provide essential information and practical guidance on how to prepare for and respond to civil unrest and demonstrations. Participants will learn:

  • Understanding First Amendment Rights: A brief overview of the constitutional protections afforded to individuals engaging in peaceful demonstrations.
  • Potential impacts on businesses: The various ways that civil unrest and demonstrations can affect operations, including disruptions, property damage, and negative publicity.
  • Developing a contingency plan: Creating a comprehensive plan to address potential disruptions and ensure business continuity.
  • Communicating effectively: Strategies for communicating with employees, customers, and the community during and after demonstrations.
  • Protecting your business: Tips for safeguarding property and minimizing risks associated with civil unrest.
  • Legal considerations: Understanding your rights and responsibilities as a business or organization during demonstrations.
  • Building relationships with local authorities: Establishing positive relationships with law enforcement and community leaders to facilitate effective communication and coordination.

By attending this webinar, you will gain valuable insights and practical tools to help your organization:

  • Prepare for and mitigate the risks associated with civil unrest and demonstrations.
  • Protect your property and employees.
  • Maintain continuity of operations.
  • Strengthen your organization’s resilience.

This webinar is designed to provide actionable insights and practical tools to help businesses, nonprofits, and faith-based organizations be better prepared for and respond to civil unrest and First Amendment demonstrations.

Guest Speakers:

Jennifer Gray – Contract Support to the Active Assailant Interdisciplinary Working Group (AAIWG)

Cpl. Mark Klinger – Maryland State Police

Living by the Levee: Navigating Flood Resilience with Unsheltered Communities

Webinar Description:

It’s not uncommon to find those experiencing homelessness living in flood zones near levees or along dams. While this poses immediate risks to those unhoused populations, it can also affect safety inspections and certifications of the flood risk infrastructure. Flood risk managers have struggled with how to engage these populations while also managing the dams and levees.

Beginning in 2022, the California U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Silver Jackets team convened a series of interagency and interdisciplinary workshops to explore this issue. These workshops produced actionable steps for care-informed strategies to communicate with homeless populations that live along levees and waterways while maintaining community flood infrastructure.

Join project leaders as they discuss the challenges and risks associated with flood resilience, infrastructure, and unhoused communities. Attendees will learn about project outcomes and tangible actions that flood risk managers can take to provide flood resilience for all members of the community.

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information on how to join the webinar.

Speakers:

Jessica Ludy, United States Army Corps of Engineers
Emily Marcil, United States Army Corps of Engineers

When preparing and responding to emergencies, it is crucial to embed health equity from the start to ensure that all people have equal access to life-saving information, services, and programs. Emergencies, such as a natural disaster or a pandemic, can have devastating impacts on whole communities. People in racial and ethnic minority communities, people with disabilities, people living in geographically isolated areas, and other groups often face systemic barriers and health disparities that are exacerbated during an emergency.

Join CDC’s Office of Health Equity (OHE) and our partners to learn about the importance of health equity in emergency response and preparedness. OHE and CDC’s Office of Readiness and Response will present on its emergency response work, including the establishment of the Chief Health Equity Officer (CHEO) unit in CDC emergency responses. Additional presenters include subject matter experts from Choose Healthy Life, Southern Plains Tribal Health Board, and National Association of State Directors of Developmental Disabilities Services (NASDDDS)

 Fall 2024 Lunch and Learn Webinar Series by the Northwest Fire Science Consortium

Following another significant wildfire season in the Northwest, many communities and managers are yet again focused on postfire recovery and management. The questions at hand are diverse: How do we cope with watershed impacts and restore burned landscapes? How do we ensure that landowners can access resources to replant? What does community recovery look like from a social and organizational standpoint? How do people recreate in and relate to post-fire and landscapes? Together, how do we recover, reforest, and seek resilience most effectively? Join us for a webinar series to encourage broad reflection and discussion on these questions.

Wednesdays from 12pm–1pm PDT: October 9th, 16th, 23rd, 30th; November 6th

Fire Scars on the Landscape: The Science and Management of Debris Flows

Oct 9 2024, 12 – 1pm
Recently burned areas are at increased risk of flooding and debris flows, or rapidly moving landslides. Learn more about the science behind why debris flows happen, and how managers use that science to mitigate these hazards, even ahead of the fire…
 
Exploring Diverse Community Pathways to Recovery
Oct 16 2024, 12 – 1pm
After a fire, communities have to work together to organize their recovery effort. Local governments and community groups are on the front lines of figuring out what this looks like in their local contexts. A social scientist and a long-term…
 
Post-Fire Restoration Infrastructure: Adjusting our Systems to New Patterns of Runoff
Oct 23 2024, 12 – 1pm
We reengineer and rebuild after wildfire through a range of treatments, trying to match our built infrastructure to new, amplified patterns of runoff. A national wildfire practitioner speaks to how leaders and policy makers are increasingly…
 
The Reforestation Pipeline: Ensuring Equitable Access to Replanting
Oct 30 2024, 12 – 1pm
The science behind reforestation is not new, but in a changing climate, new challenges are rising around what to plant, where to plant, and who has access to planting opportunities. Two nonprofit practitioners review the science of reforestation and…
 
Recreating and Relating to the Land After Fire
Nov 6 2024, 12 – 1pm
Wildfires reshape recreation access and experiences over the short and long term. A researcher shares emerging science that is revealing how people return to and perceive wildfire-affected landscapes, and a manager shares how they navigate decisions…

 

Hurricane Helene caused widespread destruction and devastation, from Florida, where it first made landfall, to the Appalachian Mountains and beyond. While many of the areas that have been devastated are still being evaluated, it’s clear the havoc and damage are immense.

We are hosting a webinar on Thursday, Oct. 3, at 1 p.m. ET to discuss the most urgent and ongoing needs in affected communities and explore how chronic and repetitive disasters create additional challenges.

CDP’s President and CEO, Patty McIlreavy, will moderate the discussion. She will be joined by:

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