Recipient Organization
UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA
(N/A)
FAIRBANKS,AK 99775
Performing Department
AK COOPERATIVE EXTENSION
Non Technical Summary
The Rural Alaska Citizens Emergency Preparedness (RACEP) project is a new application that seeks to better prepare citizens to be effective participants in the preparation and response to natural disasters, particularly those resulting from wildfires and weather-related events.. The project will enhance Local Emergency Preparedness Committees (LEPCs) as stakeholders in citizen awareness of emergency preparedness. RACEP will augment national networks, such Extension Disaster Education Network (EDEN), through contribution of web-based courses and articles. This project addresses key target areas of (1) Education and Technical Assistance, (2) Collaboration, and (3) Communication Delivery. The primary goal of RACEP is enhanced citizen preparedness and positive response, especially in remote rural Alaska, for emergencies caused by such weather-related events as river and coastal flooding, hurricane-force winds, and for natural disasters including wildfire. This will be accomplished through 1) increased collaboration of Extension with target LEPCs, rural stakeholders and other constituents and organizations, 2) the development and distribution of educational material through a variety of media (print, web, and presentation) both regionally and nationally, and 3) increased participation of Alaska Extension in EDEN and relevant eXtension Communities of Practice, such as eWIN and others. Anticipated outcomes include: 1) rural stakeholders have increased knowledge about effects of climate change on storm and wildfire frequency and how to prepare and respond to emergencies especially within the first 72 hours, 2) increased participation and contribution by Alaska Extension in national disaster Extension education networks, and 3) enhanced support of LEPCs through the creation and distribution of educational media.
Animal Health Component
(N/A)
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
(N/A)
Developmental
(N/A)
Goals / Objectives
The primary goal of the Rural Alaska Citizens Emergency Preparedness (RACEP) project is enhanced citizen preparedness and positive response, especially in remote rural regions of Alaska, for emergencies caused by such weather-related events as river and coastal flooding, coastal erosion, hurricane-force winds, and for natural disasters including wildfire. RACEP's objectives are 1) to create awareness among rural citizens of the importance of anticipating and preparing for natural disasters, particularly for wildfire and severe weather events, 2) educate citizens about the importance of assuming individual responsibility for their safety and wellness during natural disasters, especially during the first 72 hours while incident commands are established, and 3) collaborate with and support Local Emergency Planning Committees (Kenai, Sitka and Delta-Greely) in their effort to educate and provide information to the public.
Project Methods
Project directors will work with LEPC members and others to craft deliverables that are responsive to local emergency preparedness education needs, and which may be of utility to the wider audience of rural stakeholders both in Alaska and elsewhere in the U.S. Although initial project products will be crafted specifically for the three LEPCs, they will be developed to be easily adapted for use by any LEPC in the state. First, in conjunction with each LEPC's Information Committee, and other LEPC members as required, project personnel will assess gaps in educational and outreach materials in the areas of wildfire, coastal and river flooding, coastal erosion and other weather-related emergencies. Next, RACEP project directors will collaborate with experts to gather technical information and synthesize it into useful, accurate and easily accessible educational material: prepared presentations, short informational webinars, and other instructional/informational material suitable for use in print, web or for posting on social media sites. The project team will create ready-to-use presentation materials on specific emergency preparedness scenarios; these will be available for distribution to local civic organizations, city councils, schools, churches and other community organizations that express interest in helping their members improve their emergency preparedness. The package will consist of a PowerPoint presentation with accompanying handouts and brochure templates on the project-targeted natural disasters. for and deliver to their organization/community. Complementary to the place-based presentation package, webinars will be created from the same presentation content, visuals and supporting material, to enhance existing digital dissemination. RACEP will also collaborate with EDEN and eXtension to prepare course modules and web-based articles for Extension professionals to use via these platforms. RACEP project directors will join eWIN (and potentially other Communities of Practice) to strengthen the interface between Alaska Extension and the national Extension education networks. Project directors will provide input and technical expertise to eXtension and EDEN, and help identify, synthesize and relate Extension disaster preparedness material to LEPCs and their stakeholders. Each sample presentation and complementary webinar will be field-tested at least once in each LEPD; anticipated roll-out of sample presentations is in the second half of the project year. Through concurrent community networking during project implementation, project directors will recruit one civic organization in each LEPD to test-drive a sample presentation package; our evaluation specialist will prepare user surveys for distribution to both the community presenter and the audience. Project directors will attend the trial presentation taking informal notes on, among other things, audience level of engagement, presentation flow, and comfort level of volunteer presenter with provided material (i.e. is the presentation easy to use?). Based upon survey results, observations and presenters' feedback, we will modify and enhance content, format, and supporting materials to improve efficacy in delivery, material applicability and audience engagement and comprehension. In addition to the material detailed above, brochures, web and social media content will be created for distribution and use by LEPCs and other civic organizations to improve dissemination of information on wildfire, flooding and other weather-related emergencies. It is anticipated that all media produced from RACEP activities will become part of the Alaska Extension publications catalog as well as distributed at venues in which Extension regularly participates (ex. Alaska Forum on the Environment, Palmer State Fair, Tanana Valley State Fair, among other state and regional events), thereby continuing distribution of this educational material well beyond the end of project life. Advertisement of new or expanded emergency preparedness material will be done using methods most effective in the targeted LEPDs: radio Public Service Announcements (PSAs), newspaper articles, list serves and social media.