Thursday, October 10th from 5:30-6:30 PM in the Parlor C Room
Danielle Sumy, IRIS
Robert-Michael de Groot, USGS - Pasadena
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in partnership with the emergency management agencies, state geological surveys, and academic partners in Washington, Oregon, and California, are in the first phase of operations of the ShakeAlert Earthquake Early Warning System for the West Coast of the United States. ShakeAlert requires the necessary technical expertise, but also needs well-informed feedback into the System’s human interface and how ShakeAlert will be an effective tool in reducing earthquake risk for its end users including people receiving individual alerts and systems performing automated actions. In response to these needs, the USGS and its partners formed the ShakeAlert Joint Committee for Communication, Education, and Outreach (JCCEO) to develop a comprehensive five-priority Communication, Education, and Outreach (CEO) plan that focuses on: (1) public safety, preparedness, and resilience, (2) technical partner engagement, (3) strategic communications, (4) integration with other federal and state earthquake information products, and (5) educational resource development. The ShakeAlert CEO plan takes into consideration the technical capabilities and limitations of the ShakeAlert System, maximizes life-safety and property protection, uses known best practices, conducts cutting-edge social science research to address gaps in knowledge, and interfaces with over 50 technical partners in over a dozen sectors to develop and implement innovative applications for ShakeAlert. IRIS, in collaboration with the USGS and ShakeAlert partners at large, is developing a suite of educational activities and animations designed to inform and engage multiple audiences, from middle school students through senior citizens in many learning environments. In this breakout group session, IRIS and other ShakeAlert partners will be on hand to update and inform the SAGE/GAGE communities about the current education plans, the resources currently available to discuss ShakeAlert, the importance of education development and its role within the JCCEO, and to discuss with the seismology and geodesy communities about what they would like to see going forward.
