United Way Worldwide and Community Resilience Programs

Marcus Coleman Vice President of Community Resilience Strategy, for the United Way Worldwide joins the podcast episode. He talks with the team about the 138 year history of the United Way and its commitment to 4 areas of community resilience: Disaster, Resilient Ecosystems, Economic Resilience, and Personal Resilience (personal connectedness and social capital). They commit to being there for people before, during, and after disaster strikes.

Also joining us to participate in the discussion is our disaster emergency management expert, Becky DePodwin. She brings her background to asking Marcus questions about the ways local communities are adapting to the rapidly changing Federal response system in the current environment.

Tip Sheet PDF for United We Prepare Initiative

United We Prepare Program Homepage

The episode was co-hosted by Sam Bradley and Jamie Davis.

Scroll down for Podcast Discussion Summary

Thank you as always to Paragon Medical Education Group for their long-term support of the Disaster Podcast. Dr. Joe Holley and the team at Paragon continue to provide excellent and customized disaster response training to jurisdictions around the U.S. and internationally as well.

Podcast Discussion Summary

Community Resilience and Climate Action

The group welcomed Marcus Coleman, Vice President of Community Resilience Strategy for United Way Worldwide, and discussed his role in establishing public-private partnerships to promote community resilience and address the climate crisis. They briefly touched on recent weather patterns and the success of a recent podcast episode.

United Way’s Crisis Response Initiatives

Marcus explained United Way’s 138-year history as an interfaith organization that mobilizes communities during crises, with a focus on disaster response, environmental resilience, economic resilience, and social connectedness. He detailed how United Ways activate locally during disasters through partnerships with organizations like the Red Cross and Salvation Army, leveraging their 2-1-1 information service and existing community relationships.

Marcus highlighted their role in both immediate disaste