Musings on the Illusion of Certainty
Jasmine May2023-05-25T18:19:57+00:00“The great deception of life is to assume that what is so today will be so tomorrow” (former Senator Bill Bradley, writing in ”Time Past, Time Present).
About Jasmine May
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Volunteer to Change the World by Planting Trees
Jasmine May2023-04-27T01:03:14+00:00Volunteer to Change the World by Planting Trees Trees are Resilience Equalizers By Nancy Aird Arbor Day (April 28) encourages us to join the world in making a step to resolving disparity, inequality and environmental justice for mankind by reforesting rural and urban land. Nature-poor neighborhoods negatively impact social, economic, and wellness of residents. Joining forces in planting even 1 million trees will start the change by absorbing 24,000 tons of CO2, stabilizing climate, releasing oxygen, restoring fish and animal habitat, and working on neighborhood tree equity urban heat island effects. The Washington Tree Equity Collaborative was created [...]
National Volunteer Month Volunteers Supporting Community Resiliency
Jasmine May2023-04-27T00:55:19+00:00National Volunteer Month Volunteers Supporting Community Resiliency By Linda Crerar Society needs resilient communities. Volunteering is a major engagement tool with open positions available in most communities. Joining people together helps to achieve stronger shared goals, strengthens trust and relationships as stronger bonds of solidarity are forged by creating strategies for managing risks. Localized volunteering helps communities organize, set priorities, and take ownership of local needs. Community volunteer are frequently the first responders and may be the only source of available help available in a crisis. They help provide better interpretations of information to immediate crises with the [...]
Report From NEMA Midyear Forum 2023
Jasmine May2023-05-25T18:21:27+00:00The National Emergency Management Association (NEMA) biannual gatherings are opportunities for information-sharing and straightforward discussions with government and private sector leaders. State (and territorial) emergency management directors occupy unique roles. Responsible to the governor or a senior official – in Washington State it’s The Adjutant General (TAG) – they not only deal with issues affecting their respective jurisdictions (while balancing the political inclinations of elected officials), but aided by Association staff must be alert to developments on the national front that could impact local and state government.
Emergency Management: Present and Future
Jasmine May2023-05-25T18:22:11+00:00Educators and senior emergency management officials have pondered what would motivate a person to aspire to a career in emergency management. How do we attract bright young students while providing continuing education and growth opportunities for those already immersed in emergency management roles? This is not just a problem of the moment how can emergency management survive, and thrive, in the long term?
Definition: “Resilience – The Capacity to Bend Without Breaking”
Jasmine May2023-05-25T18:23:13+00:00My favorite English professor at Western Washington, Arthur Hicks, taught Shakespeare. He administered daily, graded 10-minute snap exams on some aspect of the previous day’s reading – if you did well, he would write on your paper “so far, good…but” and he would then point out additional insights (channeling Shakespeare, I presume) the student might have incorporated into the exam response. When I asked why he did that, he said there was always something more to learn, something more to uncover – “so far, good” was thus an exhortation to dig deeper, become even more proficient.
“Back to the Future” – Taking Control and Personal Responsibility Over Our Destiny-reclaiming our future to Engage and Take Action
Jasmine May2023-01-12T21:11:32+00:00“Back to the Future” - Taking Control and Personal Responsibility Over Our Destiny-reclaiming our future to Engage and Take Action By Linda Crerar The main theme of the movie “Back to the Future” (1985) concerns taking control and personal responsibility over one's own destiny. A situation can be changed even if it seems otherwise impossible to overcome. Lea Thompson, actress and director, who is best known for her role as Lorraine Baines-McFly in the movie, said the film represents how one moment can have a significant and lasting impact on a person's life. Three lessons from Back to the [...]
Holiday Message from the Center Director and Staff
Jasmine May2022-12-20T22:36:40+00:00As we look back upon the past year, we would like to acknowledge those who have helped and inspired us to keep plugging along.
And Another Thing… (notes from a grumpy septuagenarian) – Dec 2022
Jasmine May2023-05-25T18:23:51+00:00As our nation lurches into a worrisome and contentious period in our history, I’ll share some less-than-earth-shaking thoughts I have had recently (if you open your window, you may hear me shouting).
Education = National Security
Jasmine May2022-12-15T18:55:36+00:00Education = National Security By Jim Mullen Emergency Management Once Removed As a student financial aid director at a struggling private college in Illinois in the early 1970s, I had the responsibility of ensuring that students could finance their college educations without incurring loan obligations that would inhibit their personal and professional futures while assuring that the institution itself survived. Angst over student loan debt is not a new development. During the Cold War, improved access to higher education for all Americans became a national security issue. Soviet Union successes (launching “Sputnik” in 1957, Gagarin’s sub-orbital flight in 1961) persuaded [...]