Produced and hosted by FEMA, this 6-part Speaker Series is organized around the theme ‘Equity, Resilience in Recovery’.  The goal of the Speaker Series is to bring people together to exchange information, inspire one another, and generate discussion on equitable strategies that build strong foundation for recovery which brings us closer to resilience and security for all.

Equity is the superior resilience model as it refers to proportional representation of opportunities in housing, healthcare, employment, and all indicators of living a healthy life for all populations

As Region 6 embarks on addressing the impacts of COVID-19 on our communities, we must set the intention of our work beyond just recovery. Recovery gets us back to where we were before crisis.  Resilience makes us stronger and better prepared to rebound and recover from times of crisis.  Equity is the heartbeat of resilience. When we focus efforts on equity, true resilience abounds. Equity is about building the capacity of people and their communities to withstand, recover from, and thrive after crisis. Efforts to create a more equitable Region 6 must be accompanied by a systemic approach that is employed across our region to promote access to equitable opportunities and resources that reduce disparities, including housing insecurity, education, workforce development, health, and other economic and social disparities.

Each 90-minute Session will provide the place to have honest conversations on the critical issues exacerbated by COVID-19; discuss disparities and barriers to resilience; identify opportunities for collaboration; leverage of resources; and identify innovative solutions to equitable and resilient recovery across all social and community sectors.

Outcomes and Benefits

• Create a gathering space for problem solving and working together in this time in which we find ourselves
• Identify ways in which partners can use and leverage resources to solve problems we can’t solve on our own

SESSION 2: HOUSING INSECURITY

Featuring:

• Carol D. Jones, Senior Management Analyst, US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)
• Iain Hyde, Deputy Director, National Preparedness Analytics, Argonne National Library
• Laurie Schoeman, Senior National Program Director, Resilience and Disaster Recovery, Enterprise Community Partners
• Michael A. Spotts, Senior Visiting Research Fellow, Urban Land Institute's Terwilliger Center for Housing
• Bambie Hayes-Brown, President and CEO, Georgia Advancing Communities Together
• Tony Walters, Executive Director, National American Indian Housing Council
• Andreanecia M. Morris, Executive Director, HousingNOLA

Facilitated By:

• Todd C. Richardson, General Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office of Policy Development and Research, US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)