Operationalizing Climate Resilience
for Equitable Outcomes

In October of 2020, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) awarded Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI) a 3-year grant to develop and deliver training, tools and resources aimed at building economic recovery capabilities among American businesses through enhancing whole community and regional resilience. The training will also provide Economic Develop Organizations (EDO) the tools and resources required to support businesses during the recovery process of major disasters. Alliance Solutions Group, Ing. (ASG) will partner with GTRI in the research, development and delivery of the training.

GTRI’s Enterprise Innovation Institute (EI²) is the business outreach arm of GTRI, serving as the primary vehicle to achieve the goal of expanded local, regional, and global outreach in support of businesses. EI² has a rich history of supporting EDOs which has led to hundreds of community projects in economic development training, strategic planning, workforce development, manufacturing community development, infrastructure programs, innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem building, and fiscal and economic impact analyses. EI² brings a wealth of knowledge, expertise and research to this project ensuring a thorough and effective training program.

ASG has over 15 years of corporate experience developing innovative training, exercise and management programs that build sustainable disaster preparedness and environmental, health and safety capabilities among both the private and public sectors. ASG’s subject matter experts have served over 2,900 communities worldwide (pop. 67 Mil), reaching 17 countries and 48 states. ASG’s comprehensive approach to building resilience and response capabilities will greatly aid the successful development and delivery of these new courses.

IThis FEMA grant was developed in response to the need for enhancing economic resilience among U.S. businesses, specifically in the aftermath of major disasters with long recovery periods. As our nation’s communities have grown in complexity through innovation and technological advances, the potential for massive economic damage in the wake of disasters has increased. In 2017, several hurricanes, combined with devastating wildfires and other catastrophes, cost the U.S. economy a record $307 billion. In 2020, the CBO estimated that the COVID-19 pandemic will cost the U.S. economy $8 trillion over the next decade. According to FEMA, 75% of businesses that do not have business continuity plans will fail within three years of a natural disaster. History is witness that many businesses, the lifeblood of our economy, are not equipped to survive and recover from major disasters common to their region. This training program has been specifically designed to tackle these resilience and recover challenges.

This is not the first time GTRI and ASG have teamed up to design, develop and deliver new training courses for FEMA. In 2016, GTRI, in partnership with ASG, was awarded a 3-year grant to develop and deliver five new hazardous materials training courses aimed at strengthening community response and management of hazardous materials disasters.It was a successful partnership, and the delivery of the objectives outlined in the grant was completed in 2019.