Click here to view BCAT Landing Page, BCAT Fact Sheets and Mutual Aid Fact Sheets as a PDF.

Click here to view Building Innovation 2021 as a PDF.

Click here to view the NIBS Building Innovation 2021 announcement online.

Enterprise presents:

Innovative Partnerships for Affordable Housing: Working Together to Respond, Stabilize and Recover

A Conversation with
Marcia L. Fudge
Secretary of HUD
Monday, June 21 | 3 – 4 p.m. EDT

Join Enterprise Community Partners President/CEO Priscilla Almodovar and Solutions Division President Jacqueline Waggoner for a conversation with U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Marcia L. Fudge, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot and other local leaders. They will discuss the impact of Covid-19 on housing affordability and highlight efforts to respond to the crisis, stabilize households and ensure the long-term equitable recovery of our communities.

REGISTER

Webcast: Advancing Water Reuse in Small and Disadvantaged Communities

June 10, 2021 and June 29, 2021

1:00-2:30 p.m. Eastern Time

Many water recycling success stories are in larger cities. These two identical outreach and listening webcasts will introduce water recycling opportunities that make sense for smaller communities. Equally important, we want to learn from you about your communities’ interests in water recycling and your needs for support to enable you to pursue recycling projects. We will follow up these webcasts with online training tailored for small and disadvantaged communities and set up pilot projects to assist individual communities with recycling project development. Whether you are reusing water now or just thinking about it, this webcast is designed for you!

Registration Information:
To register for the June 29^th (1:00-2:30 p.m.) webcast, please visit this page: https://www.zoomgov.com/meeting/register/vJItd–vrDwqGVc85yEm5t0uV–aQ07Z_68

Once registered, you will receive directions on how to log onto the session of your choice. Both sessions are identical.

Background:
These webcasts are being presented by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Department of Agriculture-Rural Development, National Rural Water Association, and American Water Works Association are collaborating to help small and disadvantaged communities pursue water recycling. Through the Water Reuse Action Plan, several federal, state, and local agencies and organizations are taking actions like this one to build the nation’s capacity to benefit from wastewater recycling and stormwater capture and use (https://www.epa.gov/waterreuse/water-reuse-action-plan ).

For more information, contact Adam Jorge, U.S. EPA (Jorge.Adam@epa.gov, 415-972-3563).

UPCOMING FEMA WEBINARS:

FEMA is seeking verbal comments on Climate Change and Equity for Underserved Populations at a webinar on June 15 at 2 pm ET. Comments are limited to three minutes per person.

Pre-register at: https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/8344630664422138128

FEMA seeks public comments on how the agency can further advance equity in underserved communities and strengthen resilience from the impacts of climate change.  On April 22, FEMA posted a Request for Information to help identify areas where the agency’s programs can be modified to better align with President Biden’s Executive Orders 13985, 13990, and 14008.  Written comments are accepted as well through July 21 (see attachment):  FEMA Advisory: FEMA Hosts Webinar on Climate Change and Equity for Underserved Populations

MORE UPCOMING FEMA WEBINARS:

EPA Watershed Academy Webinar – Climate Change Adaptation
June 23 at 2 pm – 4 pm ET

Pre-register:  https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/5447784762291911692

This webinar will discuss the challenges of climate change adaptation planning, including the methodologies and tools currently available and how they are being used to develop adaptation strategies. Speakers will include scientists and managers whose organizations are making decisions and moving to action in the face of uncertainty. Speakers: Michael Craghan, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; Mike Molnar, Coastal States Organization; Will Veatch, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; Amanda Babson, National Park Service; Duane De Freese, Indian River Lagoon (Fla.) National Estuary Program. (See attachment):  Climate Change Adaptation Flyer

Resilient National Partnership Network – Ideation House
June 23 at 12 pm – 1 pm ET

Join the Resilient Nation Partnership Network for their first ever “Ideation Hour”!  The freestyle event is open to everyone. Bring your best resilience ideas, projects, needs and collaboration opportunities to the table. A broad range of topics will be addressed including but not limited to wildfires (wildfire season is here), social resilience, equity-centered design, hurricane season 2021.  Ask questions, network with others, and engage in creative conversation to help build actionable partnerships. Join via Zoom: https://fema.zoomgov.com/j/1603856856 ; Meeting ID: 160 385 6856; Passcode: 688004; Phone: (646) 828-7666

Environmental Collaboration and Conflict Resolution for Federal Agencies webinar on June 29^th from 1:00-2:30pm ET.

Pre-registration is required and free, but spaces are limited: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_bpSSyLc0SOGYmbLnLP-STg

Federal agencies frequently address complex environmental challenges that impact a range of stakeholders.  This work requires strong collaboration and problem solving skills. The Udall Foundation’s National Center for Environmental Conflict Resolution (National Center) is hosting a webinar for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers personnel providing an overview of environmental collaboration and conflict resolution processes and approaches for environmental managers, decision-makers, scientific experts, and stakeholders who navigate multi-party environmental issues. Join the National Center’s Director, Brian Manwaring, and Deputy Director, Stephanie Kavanaugh, for this exploration of environmental collaboration and conflict resolution in a Federal context.  Participants will gain insights into practical collaborative approaches and techniques, an understanding of resources available to Federal personnel, and learn about the USACE/National Center memorandum of agreement available to access ECCR services.

RESOURCES:

1)  Adapting Risk Communications to Create Equitable Mitigation Strategies – Guidehouse (FEMA Contractor) – Recorded video of their ASFPM presentation. Provides case studies for effective communications and partnership strategies for reaching socially, politically, and economically vulnerable communities. This presentation challenges stakeholders to view communications as a key ingredient to decreasing a person or community’s vulnerability before, during, and after a disaster. View video here:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttGS3ANJupk

2) Building Alliances for Equitable Resilience –  This resource is the result of collaboration by 26 partners in the fields of equity and resilience. Through it, FEMA seeks to inspire the whole community to make equitable and resilient practices part of their day-to-day activities. Readers will find guidance, perspectives, personal stories, resources and more. While it is a first step in a long journey, FEMA aims to increase awareness, commitments, and action to make equitable resilience possible for all.  Download here: https://www.fema.gov/sites/default/files/documents/fema_rnpn_building-alliances-for-equitable-resilience.pdf

3) NOAA Updates US Climate Normals for the 1991 – 2020 period –  Every 10 years, NOAA releases an analysis of U.S. weather of the past three decades that calculates average values for temperature, rainfall and other conditions.

Known as the U.S. Climate Normals, these 30-year averages — now spanning 1991-2020 — represent the new “normals” of our changing climate. They are calculated using climate observations collected at local weather stations across the country and are corrected for bad or missing values and any changes to the weather station over time before becoming part of the climate record.  Data available here: https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/products/us-climate-normals

FEMA’s Community Engagement and Risk Communication (CERC) has shared some recent resources:

Thinking Beyond Flood Maps – a story map highlighting communities that use FEMA data for more than floodplain management ordinances

Planning for Future Conditions – a brief guide for local officials and planners that explains the importance of considering future risks

Building Community Resilience with Nature-Based Solutions: A Guide for Local Communities – a resource to help communities make the business case for nature-based solutions

Click here to view Gray to Green Communities, June 10, 2021 as a PDF.

Gray to Green Communities – A Conversation with Dana Bourland
& Special Guests
Seizing the current housing and climate policy landscape
Thursday, June 10, 2021, 5:00-6:00 p.m. Eastern Time

Dana Bourland in Conversation: June 10

Plan now to be part of a robust dialogue featuring Dana Bourland, author of “Gray to Green Communities: A Call to Action on the Housing and Climate Crises.”

Bourland created Enterprise Green Communities in 2004. It remains the only national green building program designed with and for the affordable housing sector.

The event will feature special guests Kim Trent, Deputy Director of Prosperity for the state of Michigan, and Sunshine Mathon, Executive Director of the Charlottesville, Virginia-based Piedmont Housing Alliance.

Be part of the conversation as the panel explores key national, state and local climate and housing policy commitments. Together, we can move forward across sectors to ensure all communities have access to healthy, green homes.

Register

Video: Meet the First 20

Affordable homes in nearly every state in the country have adopted the Enterprise Green Communities Criteria. The 2020 Criteria rolled out last year, and represent the most innovative version of the award-winning standard. As developers across the nation implement the new standard, we formed a cohort of early adopters.

We’re calling this cohort The First 20. You can meet three of them in this new video:

• Stacie Birenbach, Enterprise Community Development
• Mike Saunders, McCormack Baron Salazar
• Lauren Zullo, Jonathan Rose Companies

See why these leaders chose to certify to the 2020 Criteria. And learn how the standards are putting residents’ voices first to create healthy, sustainable homes.

Watch

Click here to view NIMS Alert 16-21 as a PDF.

NIMS Alert 16-21

FEMA Releases “COVID-19 Pandemic Operational Guidance: All-Hazards Incident Response and Recovery”

To address the challenges of managing disaster response and recovery efforts as our nation enters the second year of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, FEMA is releasing the “COVID-19 Pandemic Operational Guidance: All-Hazards Incident Response and Recovery” to help emergency managers and public health officials best prepare for disasters, while continuing to respond to and recover from COVID-19. The guidance can also be used by private sector and non-governmental organizations to gain an understanding of the government’s posture, planning and readiness efforts. This updated document takes an all-hazards approach and builds on guidance provided in last year’s “COVID-19 Pandemic Operational Guidance for the 2020 Hurricane Season.”

Response and Recovery Operations Amid COVID-19

The guide provides actions emergency managers and public officials can take to prepare for response and recovery operations during ongoing COVID-19 pandemic response efforts. Specifically, the guidance:

• Describes continued challenges to disaster operations posed by COVID-19 and planning considerations, based on science and the best available data, for emergency managers in addressing those challenges.
• Outlines considerations for state, local, tribal and territorial (SLTT) governments related to planning COVID-19 testing and vaccination operations. This includes an overview of how FEMA supports SLTTs to establish and operate testing facilities and vaccination sites that ensure the fair and equitable distribution of vaccines to all individuals who want one.
• Provides updated resources (e.g., checklists, reports, and other guidance)—reflecting current lessons learned and best practices for operating in a pandemic environment— to enable emergency managers to best adapt response and recovery plans.
• Outlines how FEMA plans to continue to adapt response and recovery operations to the evolving risks of COVID-19 to ensure prioritization for life safety, life sustainment, and workforce protection, and to maintain the delivery of FEMA’s programs.

Working Together

FEMA will continue to operate under the framework of locally executed, state/tribal managed, and federal supported incident response. By creating a shared understanding of expectations among FEMA and state, local, tribal and territorial partners, the nation will be better positioned to achieve operational outcomes in disaster response and recovery efforts.

Webinars

FEMA is offering webinars throughout the month of June to go over the pandemic operational guidance. To sign up, click on the link associated with the date of attendance.

• Webinar 1 – Thursday, June 3, 10 am ET

https://fema.connectsolutions.com/cpog_webinar1/event/registration.html

• Webinar 2 – Tuesday, June 8, 3 pm ET

https://fema.connectsolutions.com/cpog_webinar2/event/registration.html

• Webinar 3 – Thursday, June 10, 11 am ET

https://fema.connectsolutions.com/cpog_webinar3/event/registration.html

• Webinar 4 – Wednesday, June 16, 7 pm ET

https://fema.connectsolutions.com/cpog_webinar4/event/registration.html

• Webinar 5 – Thursday, June 17, 1 pm ET

https://fema.connectsolutions.com/cpog_webinar5/event/registration.html

To download the document and view the full webinar schedule, please visit COVID-19 Pandemic Operational Guidance Webinars | FEMA.gov. Advance registration is required for the webinars and admission is on a first-come, first-served basis. Captioning will be available for each webinar. Please direct all webinar questions to NPD-Planning@fema.dhs.gov.

About NIMS

NIMS provides stakeholders across the whole community with the shared vocabulary, systems and processes to successfully deliver the capabilities described in the National Preparedness System. It defines operational systems that guide how personnel work together during incidents.

Learn More

NHMA has updated its Funding Opportunities paqe:

Rehabilitation of High Hazard Potential Dams Grant Program Guidance & Resources – FEMA’s Rehabilitation of High Hazard Potential Dams (HHPD) grant program provides technical, planning, design, and construction assistance for eligible rehabilitation activities that reduce dam risk and increase community preparedness.

Rehabilitation of High Hazard Potential Dams Grant Program Fact Sheet
Document – May 24, 2021
The Rehabilitation of HHPD Grant Program Fact Sheet provides a general overview of the program and its eligibility requirements.