Welcome to the National Resource Center on Advancing Emergency Preparedness for Culturally Diverse Communities, developed by the Drexel University School of Public Health’s Center for Health Equality, with support from the HHS Office of Minority Health.
Topic of the Month: Preparing African Immigrant Communities: Immigrants of African descent are among the fastest growing populations in the United States. As of 2008, African immigrants comprised nearly 4 percent of the foreign born population—up from 2.8 percent in 2000 and 1.8 percent in 1990. While African immigrants generally have higher levels of educational attainment and English procifiency than other immigrant groups, cultural intricacies pose barriers to fully meeting the preparedness, response and recovery needs of this growing population. African immigrants may have particularly low-levels of trust in government, differ in their preferred modes of communication, and are less likely to be naturalized citizens than other foreign born populations. Furthermore, service providers may lack sufficient knowledge about the characteristics of distinct religious and tribal groups within this population. CLICK HERE for a list of resources to inform preparedness efforts to meet the needs of African immigrant communities in disasters and public health emergencies.
Hurricane Season:
June 1st signaled the official start of Atlantic hurricane season. This year’s hurricane season marks the five year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina—the tragic storm which graphically highlighted the urgent need to address racial/ethnic disparities in preparedness and disaster outcomes. While federal, state, and local efforts to address these issues have gained momentum in recent years, disparities continue to persist.
CLICK HERE for a select list of resources to strengthen hurricane preparedness in diverse communities and inform planning across all phases of an emergency.
What's New in the Field?
Call for Voices from the Field!
One of the key functions of the National Resource Center is to serve as an exchange portal for information. We would like to extend an invitation to community leaders, public health officials, emergency planners and managers, first responders, and others to share stories from the field. These may highlight best practices, success stories, or lessons learned from your experiences working with racially and ethnically diverse communities across all phases of an emergency. To submit a story from the field
CLICK HERE.