Lesley Crosson 3/23/2006 2:11 PM >>
Media Contacts: Lesley Crosson, CWS/New York, (212) 870-2676, lcrosson@churchworldservice.org Jan Dragin- 24/7- (781) 925-1526, jdragin@gis.net
TO NATIONAL DESKS, ASSIGNMENT EDITORS & PRODUCERS
MEDIA ALERT
National Disaster Preparedness Conference to Focus on Human Security Strategies Forum Will Address Local Faith Community Responses for Vulnerable Populations, Children, Bioterrorism, Public Violence, Technological Disasters
PLANNING EDITORS, PRODUCERS: Conference open to media. Interviews with conference planners and key presenters available on request.
PRINCETON, NEW JERSEY, March 22-- In the wake of the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina, a March 25 national disaster preparedness forum featuring leading U.S. scholars, field personnel and faith community responders will focus on human security, the needs of vulnerable population s, and challenges posed by natural disasters, technological disasters and bioterrorism.
The second national Church World Service Forum on Domestic Disaster Ministry takes place Saturday March 25 - Tuesday March 28 at Princeton Theological Seminary in Princeton, New Jersey.
Nationally known disaster response experts and workshop leaders with practical field experience will discuss strategies and planning for worst case scenarios, with specific focus on disaster preparedness at local church congregation levels, meeting the disaster needs of children and youth, preparing for and responding to technological disasters, bioterroris m and public violence, and community organizing.
The humanitarian agency's conference is the only event of its kind designed for experienced professionals in disaster ministry.
This year's forum is expected to attract faith leaders from Protestant, Catholic, Muslim American and Jewish communities.
"We want disaster professionals and faith leaders to know what interfaith leaders from around the country are already doing around disaster preparedness and where we ought to be going in the light of past and recent disasters," says conference co-planner Linda Reed Brown.
Since the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks the U.S. has made homeland security a national priority. However, major financial and human resource investments in homeland security since then, have not demonstrabl y improved human security, as the 2005 hurricane season dramatically revealed.
Brown, Associate Director, Domestic Emergency Response Programs for Church World Service, says forum planners expect participants to "create a short list of human security issues that can then be addressed in future preparedness training programs for local faith-based responders.
"We plan to look at new models of community-based and faith-based disaster recovery," says Brown. "We'll also explore national policies and their positive and negative effects on recovery.
"If Katrina taught the nation nothing else," she said, "it was the key and fundamental role that community faith groups play in disaster preparedness and response. It is our desire to ensure that those faith-based groups are as equipped as possible in the face of future emergencies."
WHAT:
Church World Service Emergency Response Program Forum on Domestic Disaster Ministry: Building Human Security http://www.cwserp.org/uploads/training/2006ForumProg-a.3-23-2006.rtf
WHERE: Princeton Theological Seminary Princeton University Princeton, New Jersey
WHEN: Saturday March 25 - Tuesday March 28, 2006
WHO: Keynote Presentation and Plenary: Bishop Timothy W. Whitaker, Florida Area Conference of the United Methodist Church
"In Search of Security" Sunday March 26 9:00 - 9:45 a.m. Bishop Whitaker will draw from his denomination's church-wide study of human security and vulnerability.
The program's more than 20 presenters will include: * Wilma Subra, founder and principal, the Subra Company, Iberia, Louisiana-based chemistry laboratory and environmental consultancy committed to protecting the environment and the health and safety of people: "Hurricane Season 2005: From the Field"- a forum and panel examining the environmental disaster along the Gulf Coast
* Dr. Robert Pollack, Ph.D., Professor of Biological Sciences, Adjunct Professor of Religion, Lecturer in Psychiatry at the Center for Psychoanalytic Training and Research, and Director of the Earth Institute's Center for the Study of Science and Religion, Columbia University, and Adjunct Professor of Science and Religion, Union Theological Seminary: a workshop on "What Faith Leaders Need to Know About Bioterrorism"
Lee Clarke, Ph.D., Professor of Sociology, Rutgers University, and author of Mission Improbable and Worst Cases: "Planning for Catastrophe"- a forum looking at worst case scenarios
Michael J. Christensen, Ph.D., director of the Doctor of Ministry Program at Drew University and a certified traumatologist: "Children of Chernobyl " - a presentation on technological disasters
Lori Hoffner, co-founder of Colorado's Parents and Community Connecting Together (PACCT): "Organizing Around Assets of Vulnerable Populations " - a forum on public violence scenarios applying practical principles of asset -based organizing, drawing from Hoffner's experience in the Columbine High School shootings and work with the affected community
Peter B. Gudaitis, M.Div., Executive Director and CEO, New York Disaster Interfaith Services: "Hurricane Season 2005: From the Field" - a forum on the impact of assisting Gulf Coast evacuees in New York City and the impact of loss of population on the culture of Louisiana
Dr. Lori Peek, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Sociology, Colorado State University: "Vulnerability: Gender, Culture and Ethnicity"- a forum and panel on vulnerability of gender culture and scapegoat populations, drawing on the experiences of the Muslim American community in the wake of September 11
Conference presented by:
The conference is presented by humanitarian agency Church World Service, a global relief, development and refugee assistance agency. CWS was one of the early responders to the 2005 hurricane season and is one of the first agencies called to respond along with the Red Cross in times of domestic disasters. In addition to providing emergency relief and material aid, Church World Service focuses on assisting community-based long-term recovery for vulnerable and under-served populations.
###