Canadian Journal of Emergency Management
The Canadian Journal of Emergency Management (CJEM) is an open-access, peer-reviewed journal that offers a forum for Canadian emergency managers and scholars to discuss industry and environment-specific hazards, threats, practices, experiences, and knowledge. Aim and Scope The Canadian Journal of Emergency Management (CJEM) is a fully open-access, peer-reviewed journal dedicated to bringing together scholarship and practice to advance disaster and emergency management and related fields. The organization's mission is to create a forum in which scholars and practitioners of emergency management in Canada can influence and inform doctrine, policy, and practice with insightful and impactful contributions. CJEM welcomes submissions that advance basic research, applied studies, and practitioner learning alike. We define both "disaster", "emergency" and "management" broadly and are inclusive of all hazards, phases, and approaches. We are a multi-disciplinary journal, and manuscripts are welcome from physical and biological sciences, social sciences, and humanities alike. At the same time, there is a high bar for both quality and relevance to practice. In terms of quality, manuscripts will be reviewed by experts from relevant disciplines at a similar level to if they were submitted to disciplinary journals. In terms of relevance, all articles should make clear how their contributions are of interest and importance to the sector. The journal is not restricted to Canadian case studies nor authors, although articles should show relevance to the Canadian context. The journal values originality in submissions, such as articles that tackle emerging issues, new research approaches, and theoretical contributions. CJEM also welcomes, however, submissions focused on synthesis and consolidation as an important part of knowledge production and dissemination, such as systematic reviews, methodological critiques, and replication studies that make clear contributions. We value clarity and effective communication in submissions. Submitted articles should be of interest to both specialists and generalist readers in emergency management and related fields. Articles should be approachable for a diverse readership, without sacrificing quality or precision in writing or analysis. CJEM is committed to creating an inclusive, equitable, and welcoming forum for advancing knowledge in emergency management. CJEM particularly welcomes submissions from currently and historically under-represented groups in Emergency Management, and has a high standard for ethical researcher engagement with communities as part of the peer review process. CJEM accepts submissions in both French and English, and all accepted articles are translated by the journal into both languages following peer review. CJEM also warmly welcomes submissions from early career researchers and practitioners, and endeavours to provide constructive, collegial, and meaningful peer reviews that build skills and capacities for emergency management researchers and practitioners alike.
York Emergency Mitigation, Engagement, Response, and Governance Institute (Y-EMERGE)
A Resilience Space Focusing on Municipal Critical Infrastructures’ Electricity Dependence
This article addresses the growing vulnerability of municipal critical infrastructures to their dependence on electricity, a situation exacerbated by complex interdependencies. Major power outages, considered systemic risks, are difficult to anticipate and control. Moreover, within a given territory, such outages affect a wide range of infrastructures simultaneously. Consequently, consequence management requires collaborative and adaptive governance among all relevant stakeholders to mitigate impacts on populations. In this context, the concept of a resilience space is introduced. It is defined as a structured framework bringing together municipal actors and the power grid operator to strengthen both individual and collective resilience through enhanced cooperation. The central tool is the Common Situational Picture, which maps infrastructures’ response capacities and vulnerabilities, thereby supporting shared understanding and the development of adapted strategies. The implementation of the resilience space in the Montréal region has demonstrated significant benefits: improved identification of vulnerable sectors, adaptation of municipal emergency plans, and strengthened relationships among all involved stakeholders. The sustainability of this approach relies on clear governance, secure information sharing, and neutral leadership. It is becoming increasingly critical in the face of emerging challenges related to the energy transition and climate change.
Copyright (c) 2024 Canadian Journal of Emergency Management
A Gendered Emergency Framework: Integrating Sex, Gender and Equity into Emergency Management
As disasters, climate emergencies, public health crises, and security threats and conflicts increase in Canada, so do concerns about their inequitable impacts. Canada’s 2023 Chief Public Health Officer’s Report, Creating the Conditions for Resilient Communities: A Public Health Approach to Emergencies, highlighted the unequal impacts of emergencies in Canada and advocated for an improved public health and health promotion response. This article describes the Gendered Emergency Management Framework (GEM-F), developed as a practical tool to support emergency personnel, planners, and policy makers in integrating sex, gender, trauma and equity-informed considerations across the emergency management continuum, applicable to climate disasters, pandemics or conflict situations. The GEM-F is built on academic evidence, grey literature, and consultations with Canadian and Australian experts, and suggests the integration of sex and gender based analysis plus (SGBA+), and trauma-informed, equity-oriented, and gender transformative approaches into all phases of emergency management. The consistent application of the GEM-F in policy, practice and training could improve preparedness and post-event outcomes, along with overall gender and health equity.
Leaning Forward: Joint Task Force North, Civil-Military Relations, and Domestic Disaster Response in the North
Communities in Canada’s North face unique challenges in disaster response due to extreme environmental conditions, geographic remoteness, and limited infrastructure and territorial emergency management capacity. These factors often necessitate federal support, including assistance from the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF). This article examines the role of the CAF, specifically Canadian Forces Northern Area (CFNA) and its successor Joint Task Force North (JTFN), in building a collaborative “whole-of-government” approach to disaster response in the region. Using government documents, after-action reports, media stories, and practitioner interviews, this article examines the effectiveness of JTFN’s primary efforts to strengthen intergovernmental and interorganizational collaboration: by chairing and co-chairing the Arctic Security Working Group, strengthening relationships with territorial and local officials through its liaison officers and the Canadian Rangers, and organizing and facilitating annual large-scale response exercises. We then use several case studies, including the crash of First Air Flight 6560 in 2011, the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2021 flooding in the NWT and Yukon, and the Iqaluit water crisis – the latter two cases representing the first time that Operation LENTUS deployed to Canada’s territorial North – to evaluate the effectiveness and limitations of these efforts. Although we identify limitations and areas for improvement in these initiatives, we also argue that JTFN has consistently “leaned forward” to build and sustain the collaboration required for whole-of-government disaster response operations, while making broader contributions to the practice of emergency management in the North.
intergovernmental and interorganizational collaboration
Enhancing Health Equity in Emergencies: Implementing an Equity Officer in Public Health Emergency Responses
Emergencies, particularly those with public health impacts, disproportionately affect priority populations, thereby exacerbating existing health disparities. To address these challenges, emergency management practitioners across various sectors must explore actionable ways to enhance health equity throughout the emergency management cycle. Following the COVID-19 pandemic, Ottawa Public Health conducted an environmental scan and literature review that revealed limited research or resources on how to fully incorporate equity into an emergency response structure. This paper examines local initiatives in Ottawa, Ontario during emergency responses, and the need for a formal role to support those most negatively impacted. These findings led to the development of an Equity Officer position, along with a role-specific checklist. The authors recommend the implementation of this unique role, thus ensuring a core member of the incident command team is dedicated to providing support to priority populations and recommend tailored response actions during an emergency.
General Morphological Analysis in Public Health Emergency Management: An Environmental Scan
Background: Uncertainty is inherent in public health emergency management (PHEM) due to the unpredictable nature of emergencies and interplay of public health threats and their drivers. PHEM practitioners must continually develop and adapt methods to manage this uncertainty. General morphological analysis (GMA) is a computer-aided scenario modelling method that effectively addresses issues where uncertainty exists. GMA examines possible components of a complex problem and allows practitioners to consider potential connections and outcomes. Through iterative steps, GMA can generate new knowledge and insights in the development of scenarios to aid in decision-making and planning within PHEM. Method: An environmental scan was designed to identify articles that utilized GMA as one of the primary methodologies across different natural hazards within the context of PHEM. Academic databases included PubMed and Research Gate. A broad search strategy was applied to scan grey literature which included Google Scholar. Results: This environmental scan identified ten examples of GMA employed in PHEM across multiple countries and organizations. Examples in the literature targeted either a specific natural hazard or broadly targeted all known natural hazards. The findings can be divided into three interconnected categories: (a) scenario modelling for managing natural disasters, (b) strategy development and prioritization tools, and (c) decision-making support tools for emergency management teams. Conclusions: GMA is a decision-making and planning tool in PHEM that can be extended beyond scenario modelling to address uncertainties. This modelling method leverages subject matter experts to uncover innovative connections and outcomes when navigating complex problems like those observed within PHEM. Future research can involve applying GMA to PHEM in a Canadian context. Currently, the Public Health Agency of Canada is applying GMA to cyclical events (e.g., wildfires, floods, extreme heat events, and extreme weather events) to create scenarios using a PHEM lens. Future practice should involve integrating GMA with other PHEM methodologies to enhance strategies to prevent, prepare, respond and recover from future public health emergencies.
Learning from COVID equity measures to increase community resilience: Case study of a rural local public health unit
During the COVID-19 pandemic, certain populations were more likely to be infected, become ill, and suffer worse outcomes than others. Additionally, the response measures put in place to prevent viral spread had disproportionately negative impacts on certain groups of people compared to others. Local public health has a role in not only mitigating the infectious disease impacts but also those related to equity. This paper describes multi-sectoral initiatives led by a local public health agency in the district of Timiskaming, Ontario, Canada to address inequities tied to the pandemic. The authors reflect on this experience to identify opportunities for rural community actors, including local public health, to build community resilience and reduce the impact of future emergencies.
Roles of Schools and Educators in Supporting Resilience in Young Children after Disasters
The increasing frequency and severity of natural and human-induced disasters have had detrimental effects on global populations, resulting in heightened human suffering and disruptions to social structures. This paper explores the multifaceted impact of disasters, encompassing both natural hazards and unnatural disasters, on children and the role of schools and educators in mitigating these effects. While the immediate concern during crises is children’s safety, there are ways to protect and support resilience in young children. Schools hold significant importance as centres for education, socialization, and economic development, and their role in disaster response and recovery is crucial. Schools provide a sense of normalcy and continuity for communities affected by disasters. However, many schools lack the necessary preparedness, and physical structure in some cases, to effectively respond to these events, and educators often find themselves as first responders without adequate training. The paper underscores the need for comprehensive disaster skills training for educators and school staff, ensuring they are equipped to address children’s psychological, emotional, and educational needs before, during and after disasters. Additionally, schools can serve as a ‘place attachment’ for children which aids in disaster preparedness, processing traumatic experiences, and fostering resilience and recovery. This Bridging the Gap paper highlights the urgent need for proactive measures in education including disaster-focused training, robust disaster management plans, and the integration of resilience-building strategies. By prioritizing children’s well-being and leveraging the pivotal role of schools and educators, communities can enhance their capacity to cope with, respond to, and recover from disasters, ultimately promoting greater overall resilience.
Looking At the Consequences Eight Layers Down: Institutionalizing Readiness in Disaster Response Organizations
Is your organization ready to survive and exploit the opportunities that arise in every crisis? Disasters are increasing in scale, scope, and complexity and the structures currently in place are not designed to handle the now-common ‘disaster within a disaster’. The COVID-19 pandemic has shown us that our current systems need revision and updating. Black Swan events—the exceedingly rare and highly disruptive events that can trigger existential crises for organizations and societies (Taleb, 2010)—once seen as generational events are now commonplace, interrelated, and compounding components of daily life (Kayyem, 2022; Marcus et al., 2019; Roux-Dufort, 2007). Despite this reality, the reactive design of many humanitarian and disaster response organizations leaves them vulnerable during major events thus at risk of being unable to fulfil their mandates. The mantras “it cannot happen here” and “it will not happen again” are naïve and dangerous.
Climate Change, Ecosystem Loss and Flood Risk: Taking Stock using Burlington Case
Extreme weather events, climate change, and biodiversity loss are connected by both cause and solution. The impacts of climate change are already apparent as the frequency and magnitude of extreme weather events are increasing, undermining progress made across the globe toward sustainable development. These impacts are magnified by unsustainable and unplanned development, leading to lost biodiversity and ecosystem services, further reducing the ability of communities to respond and recover. As warming increases, the frequency and intensity of these hazards will also increase while at the same time making it more difficult to adapt to and mitigate disasters—the aftermath of hazards. Nature-based solutions provide opportunities to mitigate and adapt to climate change impacts, reduce the risk of disasters, enhance biodiversity, and build sustainable and resilient communities. They are cost-effective approaches that conserve, restore and enhance the natural environment. Using the 2014 flood event in the City of Burlington (Ontario, Canada), this study takes stock of flood risk in the region and how nature-based solutions provide significant co-benefits toward reducing disaster risks.
A Voice for Ontario Teachers in Disaster and Emergency Planning: A Case study of Teachers’ Experiences During the COVID-19 Pandemic
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic revealed a stark disconnect within the Ontario education system between the decision-makers at the system level (the Ministry of Education and school boards) and classroom teachers tasked with implementing these decisions. Interviews for this study provided primary and secondary school teachers in central and southern Ontario an opportunity to share their experience teaching during an extended public health disaster. The teachers focused the conversation on their frustration at the top-down decision-making from the school board and Ministry of Education and expressed that their needs as teachers were not adequately considered in the planning and response to the COVID-19 pandemic. They explained a range of impacts resulting from the lack of inclusion in the decision-making, including the erosion of their ability to carry out classroom planning, the deterioration of the quality of education delivered, and the harm to their well-being. The findings of this research recommend that one way to address this gap in the Ontario education system and mitigate the damaging effects, such as those experienced during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, is for meaningful consultation between classroom teachers and system-level decision-makers. The sentiments expressed by the participants in this study are a call for emergency practitioners within the Ontario education system to do better when it comes to including the voices and needs of teachers in preparedness and response efforts during extended public health emergencies.
Federalism, Disaster Planning Standards and Canadian Charter Rights
Canada has a problem with emergency management (EM) standards. Canadians utilize a federalist government structure that pushes responsibility for EM planning from the federal government to provinces and territories, who then pass responsibility to municipalities (or regional counties) – who typically have less resources to engage in effective EM than higher levels of government (Raikes & McBean, 2016). In this structure, there are no set standards for levels of risk and disaster protection across the nation. The overall effect of this is the lack of protective measures and planning in place to provide the people living, working or visiting Canada to be as safe as they could be. For the purposes of this discussion, the definition of a disaster is any hazard that overwhelms a community’s ability to respond, where the hazard has an immediate and negative effect on tangible (lives, property and the environment) and intangible (cultural practice, knowledge and psychological well-being) assets (Coppola, 2020; Mysiak et al., 2016). Public Safety Canada (2017) has numerous documents, including ‘An Emergency Framework for Canada: Third Edition,’ that suggests all levels of government and citizens of Canada are responsible to be prepared and help mitigate disasters. Pragmatically, however, not all people have the means, opportunity, or privilege to be prepared (Cox & Kim, 2018). Furthermore, is it the responsibility of private citizens and businesses to be prepared in case of a large-scale natural or human-made disaster for which they have little resources, training, and control compared to governments? Federal, provincial and territorial (FPT) governments have the ability and responsibility, both morally and ethically, to institute more concrete disaster risk reduction (DRR) standards across the nation to ensure a higher level of safety for the people in Canada. DRR is described in line with the UN’s Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030 (SFDRR) (2015), where disasters are mitigated through reducing existing and future risk by investing in effective policy, legislation and the recognition of areas of inequality/vulnerability in society that typically lead to an increase of negative disaster outcomes. There is a variety of ways standards could be adopted by FPT governments, such as intergovernmental agreements (IGAs) or coercive or ‘strings attached’ federal funding (Rolland, 2022). Regardless, to date no standards have been created or adopted. As Raikes and McBean (2016) note, all but one province and territory—Québec, have little or nothing in their EM legislation that attempts to reduce risk through planning and preventative measures. Most provincial/territorial legislation only state that municipalities will develop and practice a plan; there are no or few specific guidelines, rules or frameworks for what should or should not be in EM plans; only that one should exist. This paper proposes greater research into interpreting the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (CCRF or the Charter) (1982) sections on the rights to life and security for EM, where insufficient legislation may leave FPT governments open to liability unless specific DRR standards are created and upheld to protect Canadians’ rights.
Climate change is not a future threat, it's a present danger
Insurers in Canada and worldwide have a long history of raising awareness of the need to adapt to the increasing risks we face as a result of a changing climate.
Interview: Steve MacBeth, MSC, MSM, CD, Chief Operating Officer, Team Rubicon Canada
Simon Wells interviewed Steve MacBeth on December 7th, 2022. Here is the transcript of their discussion.
Supporting the role of emergent volunteers during disasters: A review of the 2021 B.C. Floods
Emergent volunteers play a vital role in supporting their local communities during emergencies or disasters. Frequently emergent volunteers find themselves as the first onsite; immediate capacity bolstering forces that fill gaps left by the scope and timing of the ‘official’ response. Despite their inherent presence during crises, these volunteers tend not to be formally acknowledged or incorporated within the larger response. In this study, we conduct a review of the various emergent responses during the BC 2021 flood disaster and evaluate their respective roles, strengths, weaknesses, and identify their common characteristics. This analysis aims to inform the employment of potential collaborative governance frameworks, namely the Constellation Collaborative Model (CCM) and the Johnson model, that appreciate and tangibly support emergent volunteer responses during disasters. On-the-ground preparedness initiatives and governance models that appreciate the presence and utility of emergent responders can promote a collaborative, safe, and supportive relationship between volunteers and governing authorities during emergencies. Such initiatives emphasise efficacy through an all of society approach to emergency management. With greater intensity of climate fuelled disasters, now is the right time to build the foundation for the next generation of emergency management systems which recognise the role of emergent volunteers.
Nature-Triggered Disasters and the Involvement of Armed Forces: Exploring a Civil-Military Collaborative Framework
Nature-triggered disasters have been causing havoc in Canada over the past decade. Although many of these hazards cannot be prevented (e.g., earthquakes), their impacts can be managed through judicious planning and by mobilizing national resources. Considering the relentless force of nature and the degree of anticipation and preparedness needed, Canadian civil and military institutions must synergize to optimally utilize human capital, knowledge, and financial resources. Both the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) and civil society actors have emphasized the importance of enhancing adaptive capacity and reliance on the armed forces for disaster response. As such, frequent involvement in domestic responses diverts the CAF’s focus away from national and international security threats, underscoring a serious national concern. Against this backdrop, the present paper analyzes existing civil-military cooperative models in Disaster Management in Canada and the USA. Three objectives are set: a) to explore the armed forces’ main tenets and approaches to disaster and emergency management, b) to find similarities and differences in institutional and resource priorities (before and during the onset of extreme nature-triggered events), and c) to identify the best collaborative practices and modes of operation of stakeholders involved. Using a case study approach, a desktop review of policy papers and an event database for two large-scale disasters: one in the United States (Hurricane Katrina in 2005) and one in Canada (the 1997 Red River flood in Manitoba) was carried out. The results offered the following major findings: a) organizational and cultural differences between the civil and military authorities in both countries drive the nature of disaster management; b) centralization vs. resource decentralization has remained the key factor in speeding up disaster response; c) political and legal scope and limitations in civil-military cooperation are often blurred; and d) the sole application of the Command, Control, and Communication (C3) approach becomes problematic when a multi-stakeholder approach is preferred for disaster management.
Emergency Planning Zones (EPZ) around potential major technological accidents sites
This article presents a methodology to establish the emergency planning zones around a site that presents risks of major technological accidents involving hazardous substances. A process to reduce the impact zones from these accidents is also presented. A concrete example involving an ammonia refrigeration system is included to illustrate the subject. The identification of the emergency planning zones is critical for public safety and is used for the preparation of emergency response plans by the site and the public emergency response organizations.
Dynamic deployment models for high-performance Emergency Medical Services
While the emergency medical services profession has evolved substantially, the way that paramedic resources respond to these incidents has stayed relatively the same, mostly mirroring deployment models utilized by fire departments. The problem is that fire and paramedic services require two very different types of staffing. Fire departments are mainly tasked with protecting property, and therefore follow a static 24/7 deployment model due to predictable demand (PRPS, 2020a). This is not the case however with paramedic services. While fire departments focus on property, paramedics requires a greater focus on protecting people and health. Over the past decade, there has been a staggering increase in medical calls, which has overwhelmed paramedic services across Canada. During the COVID-19 pandemic, most of the world saw ambulance call volumes and response times increase by up to 50% (Amiry & Maguire, 2021), especially for life-threatening emergencies (Prezant et al, 2020). It proves the importance of keeping staffing and deployment planning current to adequately deal with these surges. With regular instances of little to no ambulances available, even on regular days, there need to be improved methods identified for better resource management. For the purposes of this study, the deployment plans at two of Ontario’s largest and busiest paramedic services (referred to as Service A and Service B) were examined, to determine how different deployment models help paramedic services adapt to their call volume and remain prepared for larger-scale emergency responses.
Welcome to the Canadian Journal of Emergency Management’s Fall 2023 edition. This edition contains three peer reviewed academic articles and two “bridging the gap” articles.
Book Review: "Introduction to Emergency Management in Canada" (Emond Publishing)
With Canada now halfway through its third year of the COVID-19 pandemic, while concurrently facing various climate change related threats across the country throughout all seasons of the year, the emergency management domain continues to gain importance both in practical and academic terms.
Department-level planning and preparedness: A toolkit to assist in full-facility hospital evacuation
A full-facility hospital evacuation is highly complex and disruptive to ongoing patient care. In certain emergency situations and after careful consideration and exhaustion of other options, the decision to fully evacuate a hospital facility should be made to ensure the safety of all staff, patients, and visitors. Current literature suggests that staff are unprepared for these situations due to a lack of training and experience. Authors of this paper created a departmental-level toolkit to supplement current hospital evacuation policies in order to assist clinical leaders with planning and preparedness for full-facility evacuations. With the support of evidence-based literature from various countries, this paper discusses key concerns identified in previous hospital evacuations including staff shortages, limited formal partnerships, and availability of appropriate resources. By addressing these shortcomings, the organization can develop further resilience against the negative impacts of a full-facility evacuation. Additionally, this paper outlines recommendations for training and exercises programs to further prepare the staff for full-facility evacuations. In the growing field of emergency management, the implementation of additional resources built on evidence-based research is necessary to increase hospital preparedness in the face of emergencies.
Building new relationships and connections in emergency management: The role of social work practitioners and human service professionals in disaster recovery
Spurred by the climate crisis, disasters are growing in frequency and severity around the world. In Western Canada, the impacts of the 2013 floods, 2016 wildfires, and the Covid-19 pandemic have devastated communities. Social workers, and human service professionals who assist in meeting the needs of individuals, families, groups, and communities in overcoming challenges, such as education assistants, outreach workers, and child and family support workers, are increasingly involved in the mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery phases of disasters. However, their role is not always visible or understood by emergency management professionals. Social work is a practice-based profession that responds to the needs of individuals, families, groups, and communities, and addresses barriers and injustices in organizations and society. This article shares the findings of the study “In the aftermath of the 2016 Alberta wildfires: The role of social work practitioners and human service professionals in long-term disaster recovery.” The study adopted a mixed-method research approach that recruited 140 participants to share their experiences in semi-structured interviews, an online survey, and focus groups. A thematic analysis of the data found that social workers and human service practitioners play many critical roles in disaster recovery. This includes advocacy, assessment, counselling, crisis intervention, trauma informed care, peer support, community development, providing services and programs, research, supporting first responders. Social workers can also provide valuable input into other disaster phases. For example, social workers are embedded in communities and have relationships with residents that can inform emergency plans. They provide emergency professionals insight into the needs of residents and bring collaboration skills that enhance preparedness and mitigation programs. The study findings call for greater recognition of the role of social workers and human service professionals in disasters by emergency management professionals. Implications and recommendations for social work and emergency management professionals are offered to facilitate interdisciplinary collaboration.
A collaborative governance framework for risk assessment of critical systems in a changing climate
The fall 2021 climate events in British Columbia raise questions about the resiliency of communities, but also of critical systems, with respect to the allocation of roads, telecommunications, drinking water, electricity, etc. The interdependence of these systems can quickly generate serious consequences for populations and socio-economic activities that local and regional authorities must manage. The diversity and number of stakeholders require these authorities to coordinate well. How then can the risks to which they are exposed be better assessed? How can we ensure coherence in the measures put in place in terms of planning, preparation and response? The concepts and results presented in this article are the result of an action-research project carried out with the participation of numerous partners, particularly, but not exclusively, from municipal milieus in two regions of Quebec (Argenteuil and Brome-Missisquoi MRCs). This active collaboration with these regional partners has made it possible to propose an approach for implementing a collaborative governance framework combined with a risk assessment process. The tools and mechanisms associated with this approach will allow regional authorities to better understand the impact of climate change on the territory and to ensure consistency in the risk management actions of the various stakeholders.
It is my pleasure to introduce the Canadian Journal of Emergency Management’s Spring 2023 edition. This edition contains two peer reviewed academic articles, one “bridging the gap” article, an interview transcript as well as a special communication from the Insurance Bureau of Canada.
It is my pleasure to introduce the Canadian Journal of Emergency Management’s newest edition. This edition contains three peer reviewed academic articles as well as a book review on a new emergency management textbook.
Cultural Safety in Emergency Support Services
Wildfire and flood events of recent years, including this year, have stretched and tested British Columbia’s Emergency Support Services (ESS) system, a provincial program designed by Emergency Management BC (EMBC) to support evacuees. After action reviews from the 2017 and 2018 wildfire and flood seasons, demonstrate ESS approaches fell short of providing fully adequate support to Indigenous communities. Building upon a Master’s thesis which was designed using Indigenous research methodologies and action research engagement principles, I asked the question: “How might emergency management practitioners braid cultural safety and a respect, honouring and celebration of Indigenous traditional knowledge, and community-based practices into ESS training and practices?” This article offers a summary of findings and recommendations for practical application for communities and emergency management organizations across the country. The findings include: Finding 1 was a theme related to the context and the current state of emergency services evacuations in 2020. This included the social and historical contexts, jurisdiction, and roles and responsibilities. Finding 2 focused on the participants’ perspectives of a definition of ‘Cultural Safety,’ which included the identification of specific competencies, a focus on trust-based relationships, and a connection to land. Finding 3 focused on the evacuation and registration process, including keeping families together, the use of community ‘navigators,’ (key individuals with knowledge of community protocol trusted by the community), and suggestions for reception centres in the process of registering evacuees. Finding 4 was about providing appropriate supports and services to evacuate communities, including providing traditional food, appropriate accommodation, transportation, language, culture and cultural protocols, and including pets. Finding 5 encompassed knowledge and training required for ESS professionals engaged in evacuation of communities. This included content for culturally relevant ESS training, which need to be codesigned and led by indigenous cultural navigators, as well as incorporating evaluation and public education. Finding 6 is on the theme of Planning and Preparedness, and includes subtopics of relationships, professional capacity, emergency and evacuation plans, personal preparedness and responder self-care and wellness.
According to Canada’s Incident Command System (ICS), logistics represent the provision of “resources and other services to support incident management” (ICS Canada, 2019). Sometimes referred to as the “getters”, people working in a Logistics Section are faced with the challenge of finding diverse products and services to support efforts on the front lines, within the command centre, and at reception and registration centres. While a comprehensive hazard assessment can be helpful to identify typical resources, in a disaster situation, we never really know what we need until we need it – and then we need it right away. According to Young (2014), “the logistics and resource management functions of Emergency Management (refer to as EM logistics) have been largely reactive, with little to no pre-event planning for potential demand”. In other words, capacity building is absent. Where logistics planning has been made a priority, it generally appears in the form of updated contact information and vendor lists painstakingly collated annually. This results in a labour-intensive, redundant, and highly ineffective process and outcome. In the constantly changing and dynamic environment of emergency management, maintaining current information is a significant challenge for even the most advanced organizations. Many organizations conduct emergency management planning and preparations from the corner of their desk as they lack the capacity and resources to dedicate full time attention. Directors of Emergency Management (DEMs) regularly build relationships within their sector and engage “contractors through personal relationships and other channels” (KPMG, 2021. P.130). However, major disaster situations remove the DEM from significant logistics functions, leaving other members of the local EM team to fulfil the Logistics responsibilities. Incomplete paper or digital lists with missing information add time and complexity that can result in missed opportunities to mitigate damage to people and property – especially when the logistics functions are being undertaken by people infrequently engaged in crisis situations. This article substantiates the need for logistics as a central consideration in building and maintaining networks for connection and collaboration, identifies the value of maintaining comprehensive resource lists as a logistics function, and highlights the significance of building and maintaining local data as part of a solid strategy in preparation for the next disaster situation.
The Rising Importance Of Volunteering To Address Community Emergencies
Understanding the current role volunteerism plays within the field of emergency management, the need for renewed commitment to volunteerism at the municipal level with a joint approach is now only exponentially growing as it is faced with the current issues posed by natural disasters. With the rise of community-implicating emergencies in Canada, particularly evidenced by the recent flooding, forest fires, and the COVID-19 pandemic, there is a growing need for coordination of emergency management. This is true at the federal and provincial levels, with volunteers at the municipal level leveraging their knowledge of their respective communities, their ability to provide situational awareness on local situations and demographics, and their capacity to undertake smaller, less specialized tasks in support of professional emergency management efforts. Through the shared experiences of three emergency first responders within the firefighting and paramedical communities, this article explores community volunteerism within the scope of emergency management, demonstrating its growing importance. It further provides practical recommendations on the expansion of the community and ways that municipalities can continue to support first responders moving forward, seeking to establish the framework for an approach similar to the military approach to the Joint Interagency Multinational and Public (JIMP) environment.
The network of actors and its social representations: Method of emergency and risk management evaluation in Saint-André de Kamouraska
In this paper, we evaluate emergency and risk management by combining social network analysis and the study of social representations. We use a classical, bipartite network analysis method to highlight the key actors in emergency and risk management. The use of social representations anchors our data in a particular territorial experience. Indeed, the proposed article is a case study of the municipality of Saint-André-de-Kamouraska located in the Bas-Saint-Laurent administrative region of Quebec. We argue that the main advantages of our method are: to reveal the key actors in emergency and risk management; to reveal the impact of these actors on the governance of emergencies and risks; to draw the socialization to risk and emergency of the studied population.
In August 2021, the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released its Sixth Assessment Report. Among its authors are several Canadian climate scientists. The report has important applications for disaster and emergency management policy in Canada, and naturally foreshadows the work that practitioners will be doing in the coming years. The Canadian Journal of Emergency Management’s Operations Section has produced a briefing note summarizing the Sixth Assessment Report’s Summary for Policy Makers, which is in itself an extensive white paper. This briefing note was produced by Operations staff Kaitlyn Boudreau, Melanie Robinson, and Zahrah Farooqi, and was approved for publication by a member of the Editorial Board.
Thank you for your commitment to our profession in the midst of another busy time for emergency managers in Canada. We commend you for never stepping back and for fully engaging your important role in your community, your province, and in Canada.