Description:
This workshop is intended to address coastal resilience planning needs of local elected officials, city and county staff, and resource managers in the Apalachicola Region of Florida. The event will include expert speakers, community examples, and participatory activities. It will highlight the need to plan for adapting to changing environments, including impacts of sea level rise and dynamic coastlines in Franklin County and surrounding areas. WORKSHOP OBJECTIVES INCLUDE: · Share best available scientific information and predictions for current and future environmental conditions with decision-makers and resource managers in Franklin County and surrounding areas in Florida. · Increase awareness of the future impact of sea level rise through the use of community examples, including research from the Apalachicola NERR. · Introduce a variety of tools available to local decision-makers to assist in planning for the future and present examples of others using these tools locally. · Engage participants in the event through and participatory exercises. Cost: $10, includes workshop materials, continental breakfast and lunch

Description:
StormSmart Training #1: Before the Storm (Part 1) Thursday, February 23rd, 2012 | 2-3pm Central Time Zone Before the Storm: Part 1 is the first of four Gulf-wide coastal storm planning, response, and recovery training courses. Each training course will provide an overview of specific tools provided on the StormSmart Coast website. Before the Storm: Part 1 consists of two parts: Resources and Identifying Hazards. The Resources section of the course will provide an overview of and brief tutorial on a variety of available coastal zone management resources, such as FEMA’s Flood Insurance Study reports and Flood Insurance Rate Maps. This portion of the course will also provide attendees with tips and tools to assist decision makers to work with their community to prevent, endure, and repair damage caused by coastal storms through the use of local knowledge, geospatial data, and storm probability data. The second half of this course, Identifying Hazards, defines and explains the risks associated with Gulf-wide and state-specific hazards, such as shoreline change, sea level rise, storm surge, coastal inundation, and wind risk. Following your participation in Before the Storm: Part 1, you will have a better understanding of the tools available to help you and your community prepare for coastal storms, how to access those tools, and the potential hazards that could impact your community during and after a coastal storm. GUEST INTRODUCTION: Margaret Davidson, Director of the NOAA Coastal Services Center.

Description:
The first annual Climate Leadership Conference will be held from February 29-March 1, 2012 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The conference will bring together leaders from business, government and academic institutions, and the non-profit community interested in exchanging ideas and information on how to address climate change while simultaneously running their operations more competitively and sustainably. Conference attendees will offer and hear climate related solutions on topics including: Leveraging Clean Energy Opportunities Managing Climate Risks and Building Resilience Supply Chain Strategies Disclosures and Questionnaires Setting and Achieving GHG Reduction Goals Education & Engagement Strategies Making the Business Case for Climate Response Program Highlights Network with leaders from the public and private sectors, including Federal and state government officials, industry leaders, and nonprofit experts Attend the Climate Leadership Awards Gala, which is held in conjunction with the conference Hear insights from winners of the 2011 Climate Leadership Awards for the Supply Chain, Organizational and Individual Leadership categories

Description:
Thursday, March 8 | 2-3pm Central Time Zone Before the Storm: Part 2 builds upon the information provided in the first course, Before the Storm: Part 1, and provides additional tools and resources to help you and your community prepare for coastal storms. Part 2 includes an overview of five techniques that you can use to help prepare for and minimize the impacts of coastal storms on your community. These techniques include: Planning (e.g. developing a community master plan); Regulations and Standards (e.g. implementing new zoning laws and construction standards); Mitigation (e.g. protecting your shoreline); Infrastructure (e.g. ensuring passable access routes); and Training and Outreach (e.g. communicating all of this information to your community). Following your participation in Before the Storm: Part 2, you will have a better understanding of five techniques (Planning, Regulations and Standards, Mitigation, Infrastructure, and Training and Outreach) that you can use in your community to prepare for and reduce the impact of coastal storms.

Description:
This webinar presentation will describe how to set up a spatial analysis process for a climate adaptation management issue focused on wetland migration. It will also describe how to address the management issue spatially using the NOAA Coastal Services Habitat Priority Planner tool. In this webinar, participants will learn • The basics of the Habitat Priority Planner • How to set up a spatial analysis process to address a climate adaptation management issue • How to apply the Habitat Priority Planner to identify priority conservation areas for wetland migration To register for this event, visit http://www.csc.noaa.gov/digitalcoast/tools/hpp/training.html.

Description:
Thursday, March 22 | 2-3pm Central Time Zone The first half of this course, Before the Storm: Emergency Services will offer various approaches for creating emergency response and recovery plans, and improving disaster response coordination. The second half of this course, During the Storm: Documenting Damages, shares Gulf-wide long-term and short-term emergency contact information for emergency planners, decision makers, and community members. Following your participation in Before the Storm: Part 3, you will have a better understanding of developing and implementing an emergency response plan for your community. A community that utilizes the tools presented in the Before the Storm series of this training to reduce the impact of a storm, will now have the emergency contact information they will need when a storm hits following their participation in the During the Storm portion of this training.

Description:
The primary goal of the National Hurricane Conference is to improve hurricane preparedness, response, recovery and mitigation in order to save lives and property in the United States and the tropical islands of the Caribbean and Pacific. In addition, the conference serves as a national forum for federal, state and local officials to exchange ideas and recommend new policies to improve Emergency Management. To accomplish these goals, the annual conference emphasizes: * Lessons Learned from Hurricane Strikes. * State of the art programs worthy of emulation. * New ideas being tested or considered. * Information about new or ongoing assistance programs. * The ABC's of hurricane preparedness, response, recovery and mitigation -- in recognition of the fact that there is a continual turnover of emergency management leadership and staff.

Description:
Thursday, April 5 | 2-3pm Central Time Zone The first section of this course, Safe and Smart Recovery, explains the legalities associated with rebuilding after a storm and provides an overview of the resources available during your recovery effort. The Restoring portion of this training goes beyond resources and tools and explains the importance of restoring coastal ecosystems to reduce the risks of future storm damage. This portion of the training will approach coastal restoration from a cost-benefit and legal perspective, as well as will outline the benefits of coastal restoration, current wetland restoration efforts, and potential funding mechanisms. Following your participation in After the Storm, you will have a better understanding of your options for redevelopment and restoration following a storm event.

Description:
Registration is now open for the 3rd Annual Climate Community of Practice in the Gulf of Mexico Workshop. The workshop will be held April 16-18, 2012, at the Bourbon Orleans Hotel in New Orleans. We will also be hosting a Water Words that Work training on the afternoon of April 18th. The registration fee for the Community of Practice meeting is $50 and includes breakfast on Tuesday and Wednesday, lunch on Tuesday, and coffee throughout the meeting. The Water Words that Work meeting has a $15 registration fee and includes lunch on Wednesday. In order to reduce the environmental impact of the meeting, we will not be handing out any swag this year. Rooms are available at the Bourbon Orleans for $135/night + tax; use the link below or mention the Community of Practice when calling to make reservations. Space is limited, so make sure to register early! CoP Registration: https://fs9.formsite.com/louisianaseagrant/form7/secure_index.html Hotel Reservations: https://gc.synxis.com/rez.aspx?Hotel=20340&Chain=7824&group=1204COMMUN or (504) 523-2222 CoP website: http://www.masgc.org/climate/cop/2012workshop.html

Description:
The Be Ready Alliance Coordinating For Emergencies and the Franklin County Emergency Management Department have undertaken an effort to develop and facilitate a this unique workplace disaster exercise opportunity. Will the high winds and flooding of the next major hurricane hit your business? Do you have a plan in place to keep your doors open after the hurricane strikes? Has your plan been tested? “Hurricane Biz” is an online tabletop exercise designed to help owners and managers of businesses, non-profit organizations and government agencies, along with their employees, to assess the capabilities and capacity of their disaster response plan in regards to a hurricane. During the exercise, management and staff will have the opportunity to work together as a unified disaster response team. The team will work through the various activities associated with preparing for, then responding to and recovering from, a category two hurricane. Whether you have a disaster plan in place that you want to assess, or if you are looking for a compelling reason develop one, “Hurricane Biz” will provide you with both the tools and experience to help you reach your goal. Participation in this exercise is restricted to businesses, non-profit organizations, churches and government agencies based in Franklin County Florida.