Emergency and Disaster Management Commons^™

Gamification And Serious Games In Undergraduate Nursing Education For Disaster Preparedness In The United States, Jacob Fast

Dissertations

Disaster preparedness is a critical component of undergraduate nursing education, yet traditional instructional approaches often inadequately prepare students for the complexity and uncertainty of real-world emergencies. Emerging literature suggests that gamification and serious games may enhance engagement and applied learning; however, limited research has examined their integration within nursing curricula from the perspective of faculty responsible for instructional design. This convergent mixed-methods study investigated the extent of integration, perceived effectiveness, and practical utility of gamification and serious games in undergraduate nursing education for disaster preparedness. Quantitative data were collected through a national survey of faculty teaching in CCNE- and ACEN-accredited …

Quantifying Global Internal Displacement Risk At The Hazard-Vulnerability-Conflict Nexus, Wenzhao Li, Surendra Maharjan, Rejoice Thomas, Hesham Morgan, Ali Elgendy, Susan Mikhail, Hesham El-Askary

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

This study introduces a novel, diagnostic hazard-specific displacement risk index that integrates high-resolution hazard data with social vulnerability metrics and historical displacement records, uncovering overlooked compound risks in conflict areas and links between environmental stress and instability. Our methodology combines historical displacement records with environmental, demographic, and socioeconomic indicators to identify high-risk regions and quantify interactions between hazards and conflict across six major hazard types. Results reveal floods as the primary displacement driver, particularly in South Asia (Bangladesh, India, Pakistan) and Sub-Saharan Africa (Nigeria, Ethiopia), where dense populations in flood-prone areas intersect with low socioeconomic resilience. Droughts disproportionately impact arid …

Simulating Cyber-Resilience: The Strategic Role Of The Locked Shields Exercise In Enhancing International Cyber Preparedness, Christopher A. Ramezan, Ludwig Christian Schaupp, Elizabeth A. Vitullo, William J. Walker

Journal of Cybersecurity Education, Research and Practice

As cyberthreats to critical infrastructure remain prevalent, national response mechanisms must evolve beyond the technical domain to incorporate legal, communicative, strategic, and cross-sector coordination. This work explores Locked Shields, an annual exercise conducted by NATO's Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence, as a pedagogical and conceptual framework for simulating whole-of-government responses to cyber incidents. Unlike traditional cyber exercises, Locked Shields engages legal advisors, media strategists, and civil-military roles in realistic, scenario-driven simulations that portray the political and operational conditions of a real international-scale cyber crisis. We detail the exercise architecture, contrast with other cyber exercises, and assess its pedagogical and …

When Disaster Strikes Y’All Street: A Study On Cross-Sector Collaboration In Protecting U.S. Financial Critical Infrastructure, Rachael A. Zerr, John Friedlander

Publications and Research

This exploratory research examines public-private collaboration between corporate security leaders and local emergency responders in the North Texas financial corridor known as “Y’all Street.” Using perception-based survey data from senior representatives in the private and public sectors, the paper evaluates partnership strength, preparedness activities, information sharing, and operational coordination. Findings indicate that collaborative practices such as facility tours, joint exercises, and emergency planning are present, but that partnership maturity remains uneven and is not yet fully standardized across the corridor. The research concludes that more formalized and institutionalized coordination will be necessary to strengthen resilience as the region’s financial significance …

After A Wildfire: Considerations For Building Environmental Testing, Andrew J. Whelton, E. Bollens, C. Ferrarezzi

Resilience to Emergencies and Disasters

No abstract provided.

Assessing The Possibilities And Speculations Of Blended Teaching-Learning (Btl) Based On The Online Teaching-Learning (Otl) Experience During Covid-19 In Bangladesh, Nazmun Chaitee

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Faculty Publications

This research paper investigates the potential and viability of implementing Blended Teaching Learning (BTL) in Bangladesh, drawing on the lessons learned from the COVID-19 Online Teaching Learning (OTL) practice experiences. The study specifically focuses on examining the advantages and challenges encountered by teachers and students in online classes during the pandemic. Through a mixed-methods approach, including questionnaire surveys, interviews, and focus group discussions (FGDs), data was collected from secondary-level teachers and students in Bangladesh. The findings highlight the dedicated efforts made by educators and students in embracing and adapting to online education during the COVID-19 crisis. Furthermore, the study identifies …

Yk-4-250, A Synthetic Telmisartan-Tempol Conjugate: Crystal Structure Of A Stabilized Free Radical Containing An Angiotensin At₁ Receptor Inhibitor, Simon Friedrich, Yali Kong, Faik N. Musayev, Milton L. Brown, B. Frank Gupton

Department of Biomedical and Translational Sciences Faculty Publications

We report the first crystal structure of the telmisartan-tempol conjugate 2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-1-(λ'-oxidaneyl)piperidin-4-yl 4'-[(1,7'-dimethyl-2'-propyl-1H,3'H-[2,5'-bibenzo[d]imidazol]-3'-yl)methyl]-[1,1'-biphenyl]-2-carboxylate free radical (YK-4-250, C₄₂H₄₆N₅O₃), a dual-function inhibitor designed to target both the angiotensin II type 1 receptor (AT₁R) and reactive oxygen species (ROS). Structural analysis reveals a unique crystal architecture in which the nitroxide radical is stabilized within a sterically protected environment while preserving the telmisartan pharmacophore essential for high-affinity receptor antagonism. YK-4-250 is a novel small-molecule conjugate of telmisartan and tempol that incorporates a catalytic stabilized nitroxide radical and was rationally designed to mitigate gastrointestinal acute radiation syndrome (GI-ARS).

State Climate Superfunds, Rachel Rothschild

Articles

The harmful effects of climate change have already arrived in cities and states across America, with disasters increasing markedly in recent years along with more gradual environmental changes like sea-level rise and drought. To protect populations and natural resources, significant funding will be necessary for preventative measures as well as disaster response.

At present, it is states and ordinary taxpayers who must shoulder the enormous costs and planning for climate adaptation. A number of state legislators, however, have recently proposed enacting new laws that would require the companies who have most profited from fossil fuel usage to assist in funding …

Results Of The Second Ice Shelf-Ocean Model Intercomparison Project (Isomip+), Claire K. Yung, Xylar S. Asay-Davis, Alistair Adcroft, Christopher Y. S. Bull, Jan De Rydt, Michael S. Dinniman, Benjamin K. Galton-Fenzi, Daniel Goldberg, David E. Gwyther, Robert Hallberg, Matthew Harrison, Tore Hattermann, David M. Holland, Denise Holland, Paul R. Holland, James R. Jordan, Nicolas C. Jourdain, Kazuya Kusahara, Gustavo Marques, Pierre Mathiot, Adele K. Morrison, Yoshihiro Nakayama, Olga Sergienko, Robin S. Smith, Alon Stern, Ralph Timmermann, Qin Zhou

CCPO Publications

Ocean-driven basal melting of Antarctic ice shelves plays an important role in the mass loss of the Antarctic Ice Sheet. Ice shelf cavity-resolving ocean models are a valuable tool for understanding ice shelf-ocean interactions and for simulating projections of ice shelf and ocean states under future climate. Designed to assess the current state of ice shelf–ocean modelling, the second Ice Shelf–Ocean Model Intercomparison Project, ISOMIP+, consists of 12 ocean model configurations submitted with a common, idealised experimental setup. Here, we focus on the experiments Ocean0–2 (Asay-Davis et al., 2016), which are ocean models with idealised, static ice …

Statewide Corridor Evacuation Response And Re-Entry Behaviors In Florida During Hurricane Irma, Xin Wang, Yuan Zhu, Hong Yang, Kun Xie

Electrical & Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Hurricane Irma stands as one of the most destructive tropical storms to make landfall in the United States, particularly impacting the State of Florida, where it prompted the largest evacuation in history with approximately 7 million residents. The profound consequences of mass evacuation underscore the critical need to understand travel behaviors during hurricane evacuation and the recovery process. This research analyzes statewide evacuation and re-entry patterns, leveraging diverse datasets, including TTMS data from main corridors and GIS data. A statewide corridor-based empirical analysis framework is constructed to characterize evacuation and re-entry response patterns using sensor-based traffic observations. The results show …

We-Making Through Technology: Social Cohesion And Virtual Adaptation In Community Arts Organizations For Artists With Idd During Covid-19 Pandemic, Yumi Shirai, Michelle Boulanger Thompson, Tamara Shetron

Rehabilitation Sciences Faculty Publications

COVID-19 public health restrictions disrupted in-person arts participation, increasing risks of social isolation and reduced community access. Prior research shows that many people engaged in home-based arts and cultural activities during lockdown, supporting emotional regulation, a sense of belonging, and social connection; however, little is known about how these shifts affected community arts organizations that serve artists with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities (IDD), a population disproportionately impacted by the pandemic and longstanding inequities. We examined how community-based arts organizations adapted programming for artists with IDD during the COVID-19 pandemic, including barriers and unanticipated outcomes relevant to equitable access and participation …

Designing Crime Prevention And Crowd Management Plans For The New Berea Campus Expansion Project For The Cleveland Browns, Elleana G. Grant

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

The Cleveland Browns are expanding their CrossCountry Mortgage Campus by 16 acres. This research seeks to answer a core question: How can the design of the new expansion support both crime prevention and effective crowd management for events drawing up to 6,000 guests? Additional research questions include identifying the safety risks associated and determining which evidence-based strategies are most appropriate. The main goal of this research is to ensure that the expanded campus is safe for all visitors. This work is motivated by the significant increase in daily activity that the expansion will bring, not only during major events, but …

Physics-Based Multi-Hazard Fragility Modeling Of Low-Rise Wood-Frame Buildings Under Hurricane-Induced Wind And Surge, Mumtasirun Nahar, Abdullah M. Braik, Mohammad Syed, Maria Koliou, Petros Sideris

Civil & Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

Coastal buildings are exposed to concurrent hurricane-induced wind and storm surge, yet their vulnerability is commonly assessed using separate single-hazard models that neglect hazard interaction. This study developed a physics-based finite element framework to evaluate the performance of a low-rise light wood-frame building under simultaneous wind and surge-wave loading. A detailed three-dimensional model was constructed using a sub-assembly strategy that explicitly represented framing members, sheathing systems, and critical connections. Structural response was evaluated across a hazard space defined by wind speed, still-water depth, and flow velocity, and component- and system-level fragility functions were derived using Monte Carlo simulation and generalized …

Applying Transfer Learning For Street-Scale Nuisance Flood Forecasting In Coastal-Urban Environments, Binata Roy, Jonathan L. Goodall, Diana Mcspadden, Chetan Kumar, Steven Goldenberg, Yidi Wang, Malachi Schram

Data Science Faculty Publications

An important challenge with Machine Learning (ML) is its transferability; that is, whether an ML model trained on one set of data can be applied to a second set of data without requiring full retraining of the model. Transfer Learning (TL) addresses this challenge by transferring knowledge learned in the source domain (the data it was trained on) to the target domain (a second set of data that is statistically different but related, which the model was not trained on). This study investigates the use of TL for street-scale nuisance flood forecasting by exploring whether an ML model trained for …

Florida Local Public Administrator Perspectives On Decentralized Wastewater Treatment, Jude Hagan

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Decentralized wastewater treatment (DWT) systems, such as onsite greywater recycling and septic systems, have been demonstrated to be a potentially more sustainable, cost-effective, and disaster-resilient alternative to traditional centralized systems by treating wastewater at or near the source. However, many barriers exist that have prevented the widespread implementation of DWT, such as public opposition, lack of resources, government regulations, public health concerns, and capital costs. In this study, local emergency managers, urban planners, and utility/wastewater managers in Florida were surveyed to determine their perceptions and levels of knowledge on DWT. The results of this study were inconclusive due to a …

A Two-Stage Changepoint-Copula Framework For Non-Stationary Count Time Series: Application To Tropical Cyclones, Md Iqbal Hossain, Norou Diawara

Mathematics & Statistics Faculty Publications

Cross-basin tropical cyclone variability may exhibit complex, non-linear dependence structures influenced by large-scale climate modes and potential regime shifts. Reliance on traditional linear correlation measures without accounting for structural changes can therefore lead to misleading interpretations of global storm relationships. This study investigates the regional dependence structures of tropical cyclone counts across six major ocean basins (NA, ENP, WNP, NI, SI, and SP) from 1980 to 2024. We adopt a two-stage analytical framework integrating changepoint detection and copula modeling to address non-stationarity in both marginal distributions and dependence structures. First, we identify a significant structural break in the year 2000 …

From Sparks To Insights: An Aggregate Analysis On Arson And Explosive Data Reporting Published By The Atf (2014-2024), Zahra A. Khan

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

This thesis provides an aggregate assessment of arson and explosives incidents reported by the Bureau of Alcohol, Firearms, and Tobacco, from 2014 to 2024. This thesis is written to highlight trends, investigative outcomes, and evolving patterns of criminal activity. Analysis of the data reveals notable shifts in incident frequencies, data distributions, and case resolution rates. This suggests both emerging technologies and changing operational dynamics that have affected long-term trends in arson and explosive incidents. Variations in incident types and investigative outcomes underscore the interplay between law enforcement priorities, resource allocation, and reporting practices over the ten-year period. The study also …

Workshop Outcomes Report: 2nd International Workshop On Seismic Resilience Of Arctic Infrastructure And Social Systems, Majid Ghayoomi, Daniela Morganti

Faculty Publications

The report provides an overview of the second international workshop on Seismic Resilience of Arctic Infrastructure and Social Systems. The report discusses agenda, workshop activities, interdisciplinary working groups, and results. It ends with several strategic questions and investigation plans that were developed as part of the workshop activities.

Improving Evacuation Effectiveness On Cruise And Large Passenger Ships : An Analysis Of Human Factors, Safety Culture, And Behavioral Dynamics, Antonios Andreadakis

World Maritime University Ph.D. Dissertations

Maritime trade has long constituted a central pillar of economic development, supporting global commerce and cultural exchange. Nevertheless, the maritime environment is inherently hazardous and therefore the protection of human life has consistently constituted and will continue to remain a central priority (Casson, 1995). An instrumental turning point in maritime safety occurred after the sinking of Titanic in 1912, which prompted in 1914 an International Conference dedicated to the protection of human life at sea; which ultimately led to the adoption of the International Convention on Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) (Dalaklis, 2017). This Convention introduced internationally imposed safety …

The Fox Versus The Hedgehog: Firm Survival During Unprecedented Crises, Sheng Fang, Shaomin Li, Liu Wang

Management Faculty Publications

This paper examines how sales channel diversification influences firm resilience during the COVID crisis. Drawing on a series of logit regressions analyzing 11,662 firms across 31 developing countries, we find that firms embodying an open mind-set and a diverse array of sales channels, akin to foxes, are more likely to survive, as compared to their hedgehog counterparts, which focus on one particular task. Our mediation analysis suggests that this is mainly due to their faster growth in sales and exports. Moreover, we find that the impact of fox-like traits on firm survival is moderated by female leadership and corporate innovation.

The Influence Of Scale In Modeling Social Vulnerability And Disaster Assistance, Sina Razzaghi Asl, Oronde Drakes, Eric Tate, Samuel Brody, Wesley Highfield, Kayode Atoba

Political Science & Geography Faculty Publications

Understanding how social vulnerability relates to disaster impacts is critical for addressing social equity, yet the role of spatial scale in this relationship is often overlooked. Most studies use aggregated data, risking ecological fallacy-misinterpreting individual outcomes from group-level data. This study examines how spatial scale influences the relationship between social vulnerability and federal disaster assistance after Hurricane Harvey. Using spatial econometric models at both household and census tract levels, we assessed the strength of key vulnerability indicators in explaining disaster assistance. Results show that disability, housing tenure, household size, and income predict assistance at the household level, but their influence …

Evidence-Based Policymaking And Global Governance: An Examination Of The Role Of The Policy Studies Organization And Ecosoc, Chick Edmond

Political Science & Geography Faculty Publications

Transnational challenges, such as climate change, global inequality, pandemics, digital governance, and institutional legitimacy crises, are becoming increasingly complex, therefore, the demand for evidence-based decision-making has become an important developing normative and practical issue in the area of global governance. The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) is the principal organ of the UN responsible for coordinating policy processes across all areas of economic, social and development issues. However, despite ECOSOC’s ability to make decisions concerning how the world addresses these problems, it has been widely criticized for being unable to translate expert knowledge into tangible policy outcomes. Therefore, this paper …

From Global Norms To Local Implementation: The Sendai Framework, Disaster Risk Reduction, And Human Rights In The United States, Madelyn Schutte

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the extent to which the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction and a human rights-based approach (HRBA) are reflected in local level hazard mitigation plans in the United States. This study utilizes a directed qualitative content analysis of a local hazard mitigation plan, using McLean County, Illinois, as a single case study. The Sendai Framework and a HRBA are moderately reflected in McLean County’s hazard mitigation plan, with the most significant omission being a comprehensive discussion of the disproportionate risks faced by vulnerable populations. The results indicate that FEMA guidelines for hazard mitigation plans likely do not …

Technological Interventions For Reducing Climate Change Impacts On Health: An Overview Of Future Possibilities, Sujatha Alla, Vijay Kumar Chattu, Bawa Singh

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Faculty Publications

Globally, over five million deaths annually are attributed to extreme weather events exacerbated by climate change, such as heatwaves, hurricanes, wildfires, droughts, and floods, which create health crises and economic losses. The 2015 Paris Declaration emphasized climate technology mechanisms, including research and development, to enhance resilience and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Biotechnological advancements have mitigated about 20% of economic losses since the 1960s, highlighting technology’s potential to address climate-induced health risks.

Performance Assessment And Design Improvements For An Urban Coastal Detention Basin Under Intensifying Rainfall Extremes, Imiya Mudiyanselage Chathuranika, Agyare Asante, Faeghe Borhani, Xixi Wang, Mujde Erten-Unal, Dalya Ismael

Civil & Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

Coastal urban areas are increasingly exposed to flooding driven by more frequent and intense rainfall events, rising sea levels, and expanding impervious surfaces. Norfolk, Virginia, a low-lying coastal city with aging stormwater infrastructure, faces heightened vulnerability to these hydrologic pressures. This study evaluates the hydraulic performance of an existing urban detention basin within the Edgewater–Larchmont catchment under 10-, 50-, and 100-year, 2-h design storms using the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Storm Water Management Model (SWMM). Simulations were conducted for both pre- and post-development conditions to assess changes in peak discharge, storage capacity, and water level dynamics. Results show that urbanization, …

Building Fiscal Resilience And Enhancing Social Equity In Disaster Mitigation At The Local Level, Hyoeun Kim

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

As climate-related disasters are becoming more frequent and severe, local governments face growing pressure to manage disaster-related fiscal shocks. Although disaster mitigation and preparedness are widely recognized as cost-effective strategies for reducing future losses, local governments often lack the financial, political, and technical capacity to invest in them. Despite the importance of pre-disaster investment, mitigation and preparedness efforts continue to lag at the local level, and concerns remain that federal mitigation funding is not distributed equitably across communities. This has important implications for both equity and resilience because unequal access to mitigation resources can reinforce existing vulnerability to future natural …