UO Emergency Management - About UO Emergency Management

About UO Emergency Management

The University of Oregon functions like a small community. It is a workplace and research facility for faculty and staff, a place of learning, home to students living in the dorms, and a cultural hub for Eugene and Lane County. The University is also a crucial economic component to the state, county, and City of Eugene. It is the second largest employer in Lane County, and generates hundreds of millions of dollars in direct spending in the surrounding communities. Moreover, the University is a significant resource for the Eugene area during a disaster event. The University may be called upon by the city to provide shelter, resources, or other functions for the community as a whole as well as the campus community. Each hazard presents a unique set of issues and challenges to the University.

Crisis and disaster events require campuses to not only prepare for such events, but they also require an understanding of response capabilities and limitations. One approach to understanding capabilities and limitations is to go beyond conventional emergency operations planning and establish comprehensive preparedness, loss/risk reduction (e.g. mitigation), and recovery and reconstruction strategies. Although it is impossible to predict exactly when the next crisis or disaster might occur, or the extent to which they might affect a campus, the UO can greatly minimize losses from such events through deliberate planning, preparing, and training. Achieving disaster resilience on a campus is an exceedingly complex problem that requires coordination, cooperation, and a focused effort from the entire University, including its’ students, faculty/researchers, staff, and many partners – city, county and state government, neighboring citizens, and the private and non-profit sectors.

An integrated systems approach to emergency management is needed to become better prepared and more disaster resilient. The integrated systems approach to emergency management will assure that the UO is not only prepared to respond to crises and disasters, but will also identify opportunities to mitigate risk and prevent loss; and establish recovery and continuity strategies for all types of events big or small. Engaging in an integrated and coordinated emergency management program provides the campus with a number of benefits including:

Reduced vulnerability and exposure to future crisis and disaster events;
Protection of life, property, essential services, and critical facilities;
Diminished post-disaster economic hardship for the campus community;
Reduced short-term and long-term recovery and reconstruction costs;
Quicker resumption of University functions, including education, research, and business systems; and
Increased cooperation and communication within the community through the planning process, training, and exercising

To be successful, emergency management practices must be adequately staffed, coordinated, and integrated into current and future campus plans and policies, as well as the decision-making processes of campus.

This integrated approach offers a model for increased communication, coordination, and collaboration between diverse partners – both campus and community based – that can be used to increase the capacity of the campus to prepare, respond, and ultimately reduce their risk to all types of crises and disasters. The fact is that an integrated emergency management approach provides a comprehensive, cost-effective method for a campus to bring together resources – both human and financial – to enhance campus safety and disaster resilience.