A New Model for Disaster Readiness

Harnessing the Skills of Mass Gatherings Experts to Build Community Preparedness

In the 1970s, a radical idea transformed emergency response.

What if medics returning from Vietnam received advanced training to deliver life-saving care before patients reached the hospital? Within a decade, accident-related deaths dropped 40% and survival rates tripled for people in cardiac arrest. It was the birth of the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) system as we know it today.

America is ready for a similar transformation today.

Weather disasters now strike every four days on average, causing $182 billion in damages and displacing 11 million Americans every year. Over 95% of Americans live in counties that have experienced major disasters in the last 15 years. Traditional emergency systems are overwhelmed and understaffed.

This isn’t a political issue. It’s about honoring the most basic rights of all Americans: protecting our lives, our livelihoods, and the communities we call home.

But there’s a silver lining. Millions of people with the exact skills needed to plan for & recover from disasters already live in communities across the country. They’re your festival producers, coordinating complex logistics under pressure. The venue operators who manage crowds, power, communications, and safety systems daily. Your local community centers and houses of worship that maintain trusted networks and serve as natural gathering places.

The infrastructure exists. The workforce exists. The knowledge exists. These aren’t theoretical assets—they’re active community anchors equipped with sound systems, kitchens, staging areas, and most importantly, public trust. They’re professionals who routinely “build a city in a day” at events—exactly the skills communities need during disasters.

And they’re ready. Ready for that last mile of integrated training to become critical partners in disaster readiness. Ready when government funds the coordination. Ready when we bridge the gap between everyday resilience and emergency response.

We can continue the current approach and watch our cultural infrastructure wash away in the next major storm, along with so many lives and livelihoods. Or we can fund emergency preparedness in a way that makes sense for Americans, at a scale commensurate with the risks we face.

Are you ready?