Disaster Preparedness Forum 2025

Posted by liaison on August 21st, 2025 Posted in: Webinars and Courses

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NNLM’s upcoming free virtual forum on disaster planning and preparedness occurs in September. Each session features an expert speaker presenting on data tools and resources, disaster planning communication, and institutional preparedness with a focus on greater inclusiveness and community resilience. Disasters may include weather events, pandemics, violence, accidents, earthquakes, explosions, or any other event that may be sudden, unexpected and pose danger to life and property.

• Disaster Planning. Realities of Response and Recovery (September 10, 2025) – This 90-minute panel discussion brings together librarians from a variety of settings—public and academic to share candid stories from the front lines of disaster response and recovery.
• Strengthening Our Foundation: Disaster Preparedness, Community Resilience, and the Future of Libraries (September 11, 2025) – This one-hour session distills nearly a decade of research on disaster preparedness and community resilience, sharing lessons from disaster-affected public libraries to help you strengthen your own emergency readiness.
• Informal Weather Education Outreach (September 12, 2025) – This one-hour webinar explores best practices in informal weather education outreach and shares successful examples from the Extreme Events Institute (EEI) and International Hurricane Research Center (IHRC) at Florida International University (FIU) in Miami, Florida.
• Mental Health First Aid (September 17, 2025) – This day-long workshop presents strategies for recognizing signs and symptoms of mental health or substance use challenges and offer support without having to be a mental health professional.
• Preparing Your Library for Weather Emergencies (September 19, 2025) – This one-hour session will equip participants with practical strategies to prepare their library or worksite for environmental disasters.
• Providing a S.H.I.E.L.D. When Disaster Strikes: Librarians and Healthcare Providers Collaborate (September 23, 2025) – Presenters from the library team at the Mountain Area Health Education Center (MAHEC) in North Carolina will describe how, post-Hurricane Helene, they collaborated with healthcare providers and stakeholders to create portable disaster kits.
• Communicating Across the Gap: Strategies for Disaster Preparedness and Public Trust (September 25, 2025) – This session introduces practical communication strategies for public-facing professionals involved in disaster preparedness and response.

We here in Region 4 will also be hosting a preparedness webinar, Why Access & Functional Needs Should Be Everyone’s Priority in Community Preparedness, on September 10, 2025.

If you would like additional resources, check out two related resource guides:

• NNLM Emergency and Disaster Resources Guide
• NNLM Reading Club Disasters and Emergencies