Today's Top Picks
Hybrid Warfare – Impact on Preparedness & Resilience
During the first two decades of the 21st century, the nation’s security and defense focus was
primarily on terrorism by non-state actors and lone wolves. During that same period, advances in digital
and information technology were rapidly adopted by government and industry. Often, technology’s
implementation was quick and cheap with little regard to being secure, which created security gaps and
vulnerabilities. Threats include the weaponization of information by utilizing social media and
sponsorship of “news-media” programs.
School Active Shooter Drills – From Anxiety to Apathy
The Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act (MSDHSPSA) was approved by the Florida governor on 9 March 2018. The act implemented numerous new, and at times controversial, laws and requirements for schools, law enforcement, mental health officials, and others. Included in the law was the new requirement for schools to conduct active shooter drills as often as other emergency drills. Since fire drills are usually conducted once a month, the new requirement greatly expanded the number of active shooter (or code red) drills from approximately one to ten per school year in Florida schools.
Hybrid Warfare – Merging Old & New Age Threats
Since the end of the Second World War, nations around the globe have seen the evolution of
computers and the internet. The subsequent informational “melting pot” known as the World Wide Web has
created a fertile environment for sharing both critical intelligence and fictitious narratives. When
state actors leverage their existing conventional military tactics and combine them with ever-evolving
cyber technology, this new hybrid warfare tactic introduces numerous new and increasingly challenging
political, psychological, and economic threats.
Uncharted Waters: Volunteers & Active Shooters
Universities often use volunteers to provide assistance in helping keep campuses safe and prepared. Most facilities on campus rely on volunteer crisis managers, crisis coordinators, fire wardens, or similarly named individuals to help with various emergency preparedness and response efforts – especially with evacuations. Some larger, or specialized facilities, have full-time building managers or engineers, who have emergency preparedness and limited response responsibilities. Additional volunteers can also fill such gaps with expanding roles and responsibilities.
Core Principles of Threat Management Units
Homeland security is a complex and ever-evolving challenge whose mitigation necessitates the actions and collaboration of personnel across all branches of government and the private sector. This enhanced complexity presents law enforcement, homeland safety, and security professionals with a myriad of challenges due to an environment overflowing with existential and hybrid threats, technological innovation, interconnectivity, and limited resources.transition done in the perceived safety of a child’s home under the supervision of his/her parent was and remains fraught with inherent danger.
Trending
Emergency Management has Evolved: Why the… While initially useful, the term “all hazards” no longer accurately describes the functions or mission of the emergency management discipline.…
Elevating Healthcare Emergency Preparedness… Overlooked until disaster strikes, many emergency management departments struggle with personnel and budgetary constraints, yet the demand placed on these…
Cost Analysis: Protecting the Grid and Electronics… Because modern societies are increasingly reliant on electronics, they are more vulnerable to the effects of an electromagnetic pulse event.…
Bridging Communication Gaps: Lessons from Hurricane Helene Hurricanes in 2024 caused widespread damage to infrastructure, leading to a critical but often overlooked issue: isolation. Physical and technological…Trending
Cost Analysis: Protecting the Grid and Electronics… Because modern societies are increasingly reliant on electronics, they are more vulnerable to the effects of an electromagnetic pulse event.…Bridging Communication Gaps: Lessons from Hurricane Helene Hurricanes in 2024 caused widespread damage to infrastructure, leading to a critical but often overlooked issue: isolation. Physical and technological…Emergency Management has Evolved: Why the… While initially useful, the term “all hazards” no longer accurately describes the functions or mission of the emergency management discipline.…Elevating Healthcare Emergency Preparedness… Overlooked until disaster strikes, many emergency management departments struggle with personnel and budgetary constraints, yet the demand placed on these…Domestic Preparedness Journal
Featured in this issue: Editor’s Note: Emergency Communications—Tough Lessons From the Maui Wildfires, by Catherine L. Feinman; Emergency Alerts: The Missing Link, by Rodrigo (Roddy) Moscoso; Hidden Barriers to Public Safety Interoperability, by Gabe Elias; AI Software in 911 Dispatch Centers: An Innovative Solution, by Tanya M. Scherr; A Systems Thinking Approach to Improving Emergency Communications, by William Chapman; Connectivity: The Foundation of Disaster Response and Preparedness, by Cory Davis; Know the Audience: Five Keys to Effective Communication, by Marc Hill; Bridging Communication Gaps: Lessons From Hurricane Helene, by Greg Hauser; A Regional Approach to Public Safety Communications Planning, by Charles (Charley) Bryson
Articles Out Loud
Article Out Loud – Not Lost in Translation: A Multilingual Corps Approach
May 14, 2025
Disaster survivors and responders often face psychological hazards like acute stress disorder, depression, and post-traumatic stress. These issues are worsened
Article Out Loud – Physical and Mental Injuries in First Responders: Why Wait?
May 14, 2025
First responders undergo intense physical training to ensure they are physically prepared for emergencies. Yet despite the high-stress nature of
Emerging Homeland Security Issues – A 2018 Panel Review