How can disaster response professionals engage faith communities during crises?

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REGISTRATION ENDS April 22, 2016

Incorporating diverse religious and cultural groups into disaster response builds the resilience of the whole community. The Center for Religion and Civic Culture and National Disaster Interfaiths Network trains emergency managers and disaster response professionals on how to better engage faith communities.

Through this full-day training, participants will gain foundational skills to competently engage religious leaders and congregations in the field. Participants will also be given tools—tip sheets & a field guide set—that they can easily reference to increase their knowledge of a variety of religious communities.

Who should take this course?

  • CERT and MRC Teams
  • Disaster Responders and Volunteers
  • Faith-based Liaisons
  • Faith-based Organizations
  • Faith Communities’ Partners
  • First Responders and Law Enforcement
  • Public Health Professionals
  • Religious Leaders
  • State and Local Emergency Managers
  • VOAD Members

Religious leaders taking the Disaster Chaplaincy certification also are strongly encouraged to take the “Engaging Faith Communities in Disasters” course to build their field skills for mass-care and mass-fatality operations, and to better engage with other faith communities in building the resilience of the whole community.

Learning Objectives

At the end of the course, participants will be able to:

  • Frame the importance of engaging faith communities in disasters in terms of legal protections and effective whole community resilience.
  • Define the value and assets of faith communities and congregations in disaster operations.
  • Understand the key aspects and structures of the diverse U.S. religious landscape.
  • Access knowledge about specific religious groups.
  • Implement each step in the six-step “LEADER” process for successfully engaging faith communities.
  • Use new field skills, including Dos and Don’ts around clothing, etiquette, food, footwear, greetings, head coverings, meetings and physical interaction.
  • Successfully engage faith communities, religious leaders and congregations

Course Outline

ndintrainingThe one-day workshop will cover five modules. Participants must arrive on time and stay the full day in order to pass and receive certification.

Faith Communities as a Cornerstone of Whole Communities The Value, Landscape and Language of Faith Communities in Disasters Ten Field Skills for Successful Engagement Engaging Faith Communities through the LEADER Process Tools & Resources for Engaging Faith Communities throughout the Disaster

Resource Materials Provided

  • Engaging Faith Communities-Field Guide
  • Engaging Faith Communities-Religious Literacy Primer
  • 14 FEMA Faith Community Engagement Tip Sheets
  • 26 Tip Sheets For U.S. Religious Leaders
  • 5 Religious Competency in Mass Care Tip Sheets

Emergency managers and disaster mental health professionals also may takeNDIN’s Disaster Chaplain course (May 3-4) to develop their knowledge of spiritual care best practices (discounted rate for both courses available). You may register for one or both courses at this link:

Click Here to Register

REGISTRATION ENDS April 22, 2016

If you have questions about registration, please contact Sumaya Abubaker:abubaker@usc.edu or 213-743-1612.

The USC Center for Religion and Civic Culture is sponsoring the Los Angeles workshop, with funding provided by Community Partners and the Los Angeles Department of Public Health. A portion of the material within this course was developed for the Emergency Management Institute (EMI) through a collaborative training partnership between FEMA’s Center for Faith-based & Neighborhood Partnerships, DHS Science & Technology Resilient Systems Division, DHS’ National Center for Risk and Economic Analysis of Terrorism Events (CREATE) at the University of Southern California (USC), the USC Center for Religion and Civic Culture (CCRC), and the National Disaster Interfaiths Network (NDIN).

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