National Emergency Management Awareness Month - August 2026

07/17/2026

National Emergency Management Awareness Month begins in just two weeks!

This August, emergency managers from across the country will come together to increase understanding of the emergency management profession and the essential work taking place every day across all sectors.

To help you prepare, IAEM has released new resources and opportunities to participate, including a Campaign Promotional Kit, a Participation Calendar, and an Emergency Management Story Survey.

We encourage you to explore these resources, share your story, and join us in elevating awareness of the profession this August. Explore these resources and discover even more ways to participate here: https://loom.ly/TPDudRM

07/01/2026

National Emergency Management Awareness Month is next month, and now is the perfect time to start planning how you'll participate.

Our latest article shares four simple ways to get involved, from requesting a proclamation and using campaign resources to telling your story and helping spread awareness of the emergency management profession.

Whether you're an emergency manager, partner organization, or supporter of the profession, your participation can help make this year's campaign the most impactful yet.

Explore this article to get started today: https://loom.ly/A4Bc5rM

You can also visit our website to learn more: https://loom.ly/TPDudRM

Be sure to stay tuned over the next few weeks for campaign updates, new resources, and ways to participate!

09/04/2025

The first National Emergency Management Awareness Month (NEMAM) was truly a success. We are very proud of what we accomplished together. None of it would have been possible without your participation!

Throughout August, we elevated the voices of emergency managers, showcased the critical work being done in every community, and strengthened the connections that define our profession.

Thank you to everyone who participated by hosting events, sharing stories, or engaging with leaders. Your contributions helped lay the foundation for what we know will become a lasting tradition.

Explore our StoryMap and this dashboard that showcases the participation that was captured.
🔹 StoryMap: https://loom.ly/1KoTJVE
🔹 Dashboard: https://loom.ly/GNED0Jg

NEMAM has shown that while the challenges we face are complex, our capacity for collaboration and resilience is even greater. Together, we are building stronger communities and a stronger profession.

09/02/2025

In August, we raised awareness about the role of emergency management in creating safer and stronger communities. Awareness is essential, but it is only the beginning. September is National Preparedness Month, and this year’s theme is "Preparedness Starts at Home."

Preparedness means turning awareness into action. When individuals and families take simple steps like knowing their risks, making a plan, creating a kit, and staying engaged with their community, they strengthen the foundation that emergency managers build on when it matters most.

Let's carry the awareness we built in August into year-round action. Resources to help you get started are available through FEMA's Ready campaign: https://loom.ly/HonxTzw

National Preparedness Month (NPM) is recognized each September to promote family and community disaster planning now and throughout the year. FEMA’s Ready Campaign has observed National Preparedness Month since 2004 to encourage Americans to prepare for emergencies. The month is a great time to ta...

08/29/2025

As August and National Emergency Management Awareness Month come to an end, we’re celebrating the incredible partners who make emergency management possible.

Emergency management is a team effort. From fire and police departments, hospitals, and schools to public health agencies, utilities, nonprofit organizations, and volunteer groups, each partner plays a crucial role in preparing, responding to, and helping communities recover from disasters.

Every partnership is unique, and every partner matters. Whether it’s a school, a hospital, a local government office, or a volunteer group, collaboration is what makes our communities safer and more resilient.

Who helps your team succeed in emergency management? Tag them or give them a shoutout in the comments. Let’s celebrate the people and organizations that make a real difference—and end National Emergency Management Awareness Month by recognizing the power of working together.

08/27/2025

Why am I an emergency manager?

Vincent Holman, Sr., Civilian Deputy Surgeon with U.S. Army Pacific, shares what inspired him to pursue a career in emergency management:

"I was exposed to emergency management during a fellowship while on active duty. It provided me a front row seat, boots on the ground experience with emergencies and disasters that the National Disaster Medical System responded to during September 1999 to September 2000."

Learn more about National Emergency Management Awareness Month: https://loom.ly/5RIeI8U

08/26/2025

Mitigation in Action

When disasters strike, the best outcome is damage that never happens. That is the power of mitigation.

Mitigation is the effort to reduce loss of life and property by lessening the impact of disasters before they happen. It can take many forms: stronger building codes, property buyouts, floodwalls, seawalls, safe rooms, or even turning high-risk land into green space. These projects save lives, protect infrastructure, and reduce costs for future disasters.

Across the country, emergency managers are leading efforts that show the measurable value of mitigation.

In Miami, Florida, raising the seawall along Biscayne Bay protected the city’s only hospital during Hurricane Irma, allowing lifesaving care to continue even as the city evacuated.

In Galveston, Texas, a program of property buyouts and home elevations reduced damage during Hurricane Ike, while newly created green space absorbed storm surge and protected surrounding neighborhoods.

In Grand Forks, South Dakota, after devastating floods in 1997, more than 800 flood-prone homes were purchased, and a new floodwall system was built. Since then, the community has withstood multiple flood events with dramatically reduced losses.

From safe rooms and floodplain management to preparedness training and community partnerships, mitigation is shaping safer futures.

How has your community put mitigation into action? Share your story with us for National Emergency Management Awareness Month.

International Association of Emergency Managers

08/25/2025

Hospitals can’t close their doors when disaster strikes. That is when emergency managers step in.

For Rebekah Reynosa, CEM, Manager of Emergency Management & Business Continuity at Penn State Health, preparedness means ensuring hospital staff are ready for the unexpected. From cyberattacks and utility failures to patient surges and infectious disease outbreaks, she ensures teams understand their roles and can continue providing lifesaving care.

Rebekah’s career began with a love of studying disasters and grew through EMS, mentorship, and advanced training. Today, she leads planning and exercises that strengthen healthcare resilience and demonstrates that emergency management is essential far beyond government agencies.

🔹 Why do you think emergency management matters?

"What we do matters because the worst will happen, and on that worst day, the things we've put into place and the training we've done – it could save lives. It matters. I always hope that my job is obsolete – that nothing bad will happen, so none of the training or education I do with the hospital teams will be needed. But that's not the world we live in, and on that bad day, I want my staff to rely on the things they have been taught so that they can continue to provide the best patient care even in the face of disasters."

🔹 I describe my job to people outside the field as _________.

"Disaster preparedness. I tell people that I work for the hospital - planning and training for all sorts of possibilities (utility failure, cyberattack, surge of patients, Ebola). It's my job to make sure the staff are ready and understand their roles. Plus, I have to help the hospital stay accredited – and there's a lot of performance metrics and regulations we must meet to do that!"

🔹 One misconception about emergency management I wish more people understood is ________.

"There are SO MANY fields and so many ways you can be an emergency manager. Local/government or FEMA are not the only ways you can get into EM. I have worked in the healthcare sector for 10 years, and it is vastly different than jurisdictional EM. You can work in private industry, banking, utilities/power, schools, and higher ed. The potential or field that an EM can work in is vast – EVERYONE NEEDS US!"

Learn more about National Emergency Management Preparedness Month: https://www.iaem.org/KnowYourEM