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Community coordinators + organizers

Nongovernmental organizations, local leaders, city planners, and elected officials are constantly weighing what programs, projects, regulations, and resources will help our communities withstand wildfire and keep the homeowners’ ability to choose at the center of their decisions.

LOCAL COORDINATORS & ORGANIZERS ARE THE HEART OF COMMUNITY FIRE ADAPTATION

Your role is essential in working in the “inbetween” – you work to bring resources, training, and organization to residents and local, state, and federal partners.  You are connected across scales, geographies, and people.  You have a high level of community trust, and are the go to for getting things done.  Here are a few resources for you.  

COMMUNITY PLANNING

Use this County Leadership Guide to plan and recover from wildfires.

(National Association of Counties)

Request Community Planning Assistance for Wildfire to reduce risks through improved land use planning.

(Headwaters Economics)

Use this Handbook to collaborate with local partners to create a Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP). 

Partner with state, tribal, and local governments to develop long-term strategies to protect people and property through hazard mitigation planning. (FEMA)

FACILITATION AND TRAINING TOOLKITS

If you are working with residents to prepare for or recovery from wildfire – we have developed facilitation toolkits in English and Spanish to help you get started. 

You can use the toolkits as part of your outreach and education efforts, to work with communities to plan for wildfire, to share resources, or generate discussions around specific topics.  

The toolkits are a collection of editable resources.  Each toolkit contains a 3-part video series, presentation template with facilitator’s notes and talking points, and sample meeting/workshop agenda, including links to additional resources.  

Remember, there is not a one-size-fits-all approach to preparedness, response, and recovery – and so the toolkits do not include a comprehensive set of actions to prepare your community for wildfire but will help to start the community on your journey to better live with wildfire.

When utilizing these toolkits, we encourage you to collaborate with local partners to facilitate community conversations and adopt a set of actions unique to your community.

Please feel free to download, use, and adapt the resources to fit your needs.

Before the Fire

During the Fire

After the Fire:  Community recovery is led by local leaders and done at the local level!

Here are a few resources to get started.

A MUST READ:  Joplin Pays it Forward – Leaders Share Recovery Lessons Learned

Develop a Community Organization Active in Disaster (COAD) before a disaster strikes so that you are ready to provide assistance to disaster victims.

This Resident Recovery Workbook can be used to facilitate pre-planning for recovery workshops with residents.

 

Use these toolkits to help your community prepare for post-fire impacts or initiate the recovery process:

This After the Fire Resources Guide provides an overview of the After the Fire Resources and how they can be used as stand-alone resources or as teaching and planning tools.

more topics!

TECHNICAL & FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE

from the field:

Community Coordinators + Organizers

Click here for more!

This project was made possible through support provided by the U.S. Department of Interior (DOI) Bureau of Land Management (BLM), U.S. Department of Agriculture United State Forest Service (USFS), Washington State Conservation Commission through Cascadia Conservation District, and The Watershed and Research and Training Center (WTRC) to the Washington Resource Conservation and Development Council (WRCD).  The content and opinions expressed herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the position or the policy of the USFS, BLM, DOI, WTRC, or the WRCD and no official endorsement should be inferred.

This institution is an equal opportunity provider.

ON A MISSION IN WASHINGTON

As handy as it might be, there is no road map or checklist for fire adaptation. The scale of our task and the geographically distinct regions of our state demand that smart people with different perspectives come together. Together, we’re making headway living with wildfire in Washington.

collaborate with us

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109 S. 3rd Street
Yakima, WA 98901

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