Hazard Mitigation Training for Vulnerable Communities

Joy Semien is an interdisciplinary multi-hazard research scientist and community capacity builder. She holds a BSc in Biology from Dillard University and an MSc in Urban Planning and Environmental Policy from Texas Southern University, where she created the K.A.P.S. Framework to train high-risk communities. Joy works as a research assistant for the Hazard Reduction and Recovery Center at Texas A&M University where she is completing her doctoral degree in Urban and Regional Sciences. She has centered her doctoral research on examining the immediate impact and short-term recovery of small businesses and nonprofits that have experienced compounded events. Joy's research interest focuses on developing methods to uniquely bridge systemic gaps across disciplines while exploring the intersectionality of hazards, race, and social justice. Ultimately, she seeks to turn research into action to increase marginalized, multi-hazard communities’ ability to prepare, respond, and recover from disasters. Earthea Nance is committed to working with vulnerable communities at disproportionate risk of disasters, pollution, and inadequate infrastructure. In December 2021, she was appointed by President Biden to serve as the Regional Administrator for the Environmental Protection Agency, Region 6. Dr. Nance previously served as a public official for the City of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, where she managed $60 million in flood mitigation funds and established the city’s first approved plans for hazard mitigation, sustainability, and green energy. As a scholar, Earthea developed and implemented disaster training programs and conducted community-based research on the impacts of major disasters in Gulf Coast communities and in communities without access to water and sanitation in Brazil and Mozambique. As an advocate, she brought community and equity perspectives into regional disaster policy in the Houston metro area. Earthea earned a PhD in Civil and Environmental Engineering from Stanford University, and MSc and BSc degrees from the University of California-Davis. She previously taught at Texas Southern University, the University of New Orleans, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Virginia Tech.