Write a 200 word reply to Anthoy post, provide an appreciative inquiry response. You will not be marked on your opinion but on your ability to present a valid argument and to manage constructive discussion with your cohort while integrating the material being discussed in the course. When responding to other students please refrain from simply stating great comment/response. Offer your thoughts on what he/she may have added to make the discussion more substantive. Remember to be respectful and focus on only the discussion points and arguments posted. This forum is intended to provide an opportunity to integrate all of the learning objectives into practice.
Anthony,
Recent months have revealed a gross lack in adopting the progressive principle of emergency management in the United States. Covid-19 was a perfect opportunity to demonstrate the effectiveness of this principle but was lost on those ultimately in charge of the response, and the nation has suffered unnecessarily because of it. Progressive emergency managers anticipate future disasters and take preventive and preparatory measures to build disaster-resistant and disaster-resilient communities.(Blanchard et al., 2007) In the lecture material, three different schools of thought are presented as a way to mitigate and reduce vulnerability in the sense of being progressive.
Catastrophic Events
In the lecture materials there is a quote from Eric Tolbert stating that Americans will see one or two catastrophic events within the next couple of decades that will be beyond comprehension.([EMA 305 Week 3 Online Lecture], n.d.) Eric couldnt have been correct. In EMA-205 I was just studying the Deepwater Horizon disaster which happens to be the largest hazardous materials spill in U.S. history. Jump to January 2020 when the first U.S. case of Covid-19 was confirmed and we are now in the midst of the second catastrophic event predicted by Tolbert. To add some icing on the proverbial cake the country is also facing multiple challenges in regards to social justice in the wake of multiple questionable uses of force complaints against people of color, and clear systemic racial biases built deep into our country’s political and judicial system.
Sustainability
Milleti has several objectives and tools that could and should be used to promote sustainability in progressive emergency management, and it all essentially boils down to disaster reduction through environmental protection, social justice, and other mitigation techniques.([EMA 305 Week 3 Online Lecture], n.d.) Each of those objectives arguably has a long way to go given the current political climate. Environmental protection certainly wasnt addressed when one examines the giant blunders and lack of oversite regarding Deepwater Horizon, and reforms in social justice have a long way to go as well although it is on the forefront of Americans mind at this time whether they are supportive or not, it is at least being discussed.
Resistance
This is one area where I think we are succeeding more so than in the others. The goal of resistance in part by FEMA is to create disaster-resistant communities. If you live in or have visited Florida you are likely aware of major reforms enacted after Hurricane Andrew in regards to building code changes and construction techniques. I live in a home built in 1987 before those new codes and even before Hurricane Andrew but I have still been proactive in bolstering my home’s resistance to storms by replacing my roof with up to date changes. I also lived in a brand new construction house in the early 2000s made with concrete block construction, hurricane rated windows, and hip roof design like most buildings built post Andrew.
Resilience
If you take the Geis definition of resilience the ability to recover from or adjust easily to misfortune or change,([EMA 305 Week 3 Online Lecture], n.d.) I argue that we are as a nation far from resilient, though our talking heads like to say that we are extremely so. You cannot turn on the news these days without multiple examples of Americans not just having difficulty adjusting to misfortune or change, they deliberately resist it and look for someone or something to blame because of it. Numerous studies indicate that the wearing of masks reduces the transmission likelihood of Covid-19 yet some will brazenly walk into a Walmart waving Nazi flags screaming about their freedoms being taken away. In part because of that our country is unnecessarily suffering from a likely avoidable infection and death rate from Covid-19. The lecture materials highlight New Zealands efforts to strengthen its resilience. On February 26th New Zealand had its first case of Covid-19. After multiple science-based approaches to combat the disease New Zealand officially declared the pandemic over on June 8th with a death rate of only 4 per million cases, among the lowest in the world.(Baker et al., 2020) Meanwhile, America still struggles with mitigation while many other areas of the world including New Zealand have largely eliminated the threat.
Conclusion
All of the ideas in regards to a progressive model of emergency management are wonderful and necessary but how can they be implemented and promoted here in the U.S.? We place monetary gains above environmental impacts, we fight against lifting the poor above the poverty line with cries of socialism, and fill town hall meetings to protest mask mandates suggested by infectious disease experts while sharing unsubstantiated conspiracy theories on social media. America has a long and bumpy road ahead concerning the impacts of future disasters and truly implementing a progressive approach to emergency management
Write a 200 word reply to Maureen post, provide an appreciative inquiry response. You will not be marked on your opinion but on your ability to present a valid argument and to manage constructive discussion with your cohort while integrating the material being discussed in the course. When responding to other students please refrain from simply stating great comment/response. Offer your thoughts on what he/she may have added to make the discussion more substantive. Remember to be respectful and focus on only the discussion points and arguments posted. This forum is intended to provide an opportunity to integrate all of the learning objectives into practice.
Maureen,
The Importance of Progressive EM
?The meaning behind being Progressive in Emergency Management is for Emergency Managers to progressively create theoretical approaches to enhance sustainability, resistance and resilience. (pg.1) Emergency Managers have acknowledged the rising impact of disasters, and have created ways to reduce the effects of disasters. The progressive approach in Emergency Management helps managers anticipate future disasters and take preventative and preparatory measures to build disaster-resistant and disaster-resilient communities. (Pg. 1) There are many reasons why the need for emergency managers to be progressive is essential. One of the reasons is because disasters create injuries. Injuries from disasters range from broken bones, blunt force trauma, respiratory distress, burns, and infections. Deaths from disasters are another reason to progressively plan for a disaster.
?Damage to ones property is another reason for emergency managers to take the progressive approach. Some of the examples of property damage are parking structures that collapse, homes being destroyed, or damage to roads, bridges, schools, and hospitals. The economic loss is another factor why the progressive approach is so important in emergency management. When a disaster takes place there is a huge loss in employment, wages, and investments. The way emergency managers are going to promote their progressive agenda is three ways. The three ways are enhance sustainability, resistance, and resilience. Lucien Canton explains in his book Emergency Management: Concepts and Strategies for Effective Programs that emergency managers need to take the strategic approach to emergency management.
The Promotion of Progressive EM
Emergency Managers must mitigate and organize when dealing with a disaster to reduce the impact. Second, is being prepared. Emergency Managers must develop capabilities that create a structure that is effective in communication. Thirdly, the response strategy must focus on the responsibility of functions. Finally, the recovery process must anticipate careful planning to rebuild a community. Moreover, the best way for emergency managers to improve in the future to reduce the frequency and severity of disasters is to have different schools of thought.
Effective Schools of Thought
The first school of thought in the progressive approach that will help emergency managers is to maintain and enhance environmental quality. (Pg. 8) This school of thought will help emergency managers to help our natural resources during and after a disaster. The second school of thought that helps emergency managers is to maintain and enhance peoples quality of life. During a disaster poor people are the ones most at risk. The vulnerability of the poor are much greater than rich people that emergency managers need to take precautions prior to a disaster to take care of the communities poor people. Warnings are also important when a disaster is taken place. Effective warnings can save peoples lives along with giving people an advanced notice to evacuate their homes.
Conclusion
In closing, Emergency Managers have a lot of responsibility to protect citizens, property, and the environment. The progressive approach is very important when dealing with disasters and protecting citizens, property, and the environment. Moreover, for emergency managers to succeed with using the progressive approach they also must understand the vulnerabilities of hazards in their county or state. They must pass legislation that concentrates on risk reduction, and also train their professional staff with the new and up to date information on disasters. They also must create a hazard mitigation action plan to address each of these hazards, (pg.14) along with identifying dangerous areas in towns, or states so that they can work to create laws to fix them.
