H5: What Does the Research Say about Risk Communication?

Description

1) Converting Market Research & Metrics into Smarter Marketing and Outreach
Butch Kinerney, FEMA, Eugene.Kinerney@fema.dhs.gov
Co-presenters: None

Abstract: This presentation will inform State and local officials the potential for flood insurance policy growth based on market segmentation research and the results of the FY22 National Flood Insurance Program’s (NFIP) Hurricane Season Marketing Campaign, specifically in North Carolina. Over the last two years, the NFIP’s Marketing and Outreach Branch (M&O) has developed a market segmentation methodology to better target consumers to purchase a flood insurance policy. This methodology, which includes data sets on flood risk and affordability, allows for M&O to plan for and execute marketing campaigns using the latest digital advertising tools and technology. The Marketing Rule of 7 states that a consumer needs to “hear” or “see” the message at least 7 times before they take action. M&O’s paid marketing campaign, in addition to other marketing tactics, is a public information program to raise consumer awareness of flood risk. The Rule of 7 is achieved by applying digital marketing as a risk communication tool. For example, the FY22 Hurricane Season campaign launched in North Carolina garnered over 63 million media impressions from April 25 to September 28, 2022. A media impression is every time a consumer “hears” or “sees” a FloodSmart Ad. However, there is still much needed partnership between State, local and the agent community to attain policy growth and resiliency in North Carolina. This presentation will encourage attendees to explore partnerships and brainstorm additional marketing and outreach tactics to convert research and metrics to flood insurance policies.

2) Worldwide Lessons and Insights from Flood Risk and Mitigation Communication
Christine Gralher, PE, CFM, Jacobs, christine.gralher@jacobs.com
Co-presenters: Paul Robinson, Paul.Robinson@jacobs.com

Abstract: It is essential to make flood risk information readily available to the public, especially as climate change threatens to increase flood losses. An important piece of resilience and preparedness planning is regularly evaluating flood data and communicating the associated risks. While focusing on hazards arising from big coastal storms and sea level rise, many overlook the risks of flooding from other sources. After Hurricane Katrina, thousands moved further inland and rebuilt their lives in Baton Rouge, only to be flooded by a storm dumping heavy rain almost exactly eleven years later. Communities in upland areas, such as Appalachia, might feel safe from flooding, however, the region’s mountainous topography can put communities at risk of higher velocity flood flows. This can be exacerbated where the landscape is scarred by coal mining or wildfire, contributing to flash floods. This is why awareness and communication of flood risk is so important. In the United States, several online resources are available to the public, these however, require web access that might not be available to all demographics. For those that have access, many rely on FEMA’s Flood Insurance Studies without being aware that these studies do not take future conditions, long-term erosion, or flood asset conditions into account. This presentation asks what innovations there are in other parts of the world and explores how flood risk data is publicly shared and explained to increase flood awareness, and support mitigation efforts that increase the resilience and preparedness of communities. It will highlight how outreach and flood risk education is done across different demographics and cultures and shares the obstacles and difficulties uncovered during the worldwide comparison. The lessons learned will offer insights into improvements we may make in the US as we seek to increase flood awareness and improve flood management planning.

3) Understanding Behavioral Science and its Opportunities in Building Resilience
Griffin Smith, Ogilvy, griffin.smith@ogilvy.com
Co-presenters: Skye King; skye.king@ogilvy.com

Abstract: Behavioral science helps explain why individuals and communities make (or do not make) decisions to bolster their resilience. Natural hazards offer a powerful case to show how different behavioral biases can impact decisions.
By offering a lens to understand and support communities in making resilient decisions around natural hazards—behavior science can give us insights into how and why people choose to prepare in advance, proactively evacuate, rebuild things as they were or rebuild stronger, and to even consider relocating.  This talk will demonstrate ways in which behavioral science shapes decisions around resilience at large. It will also highlight the role of different biases in decision making processes and how to navigate around these biases to support individuals and communities to become more resilient. Attendees will leave better able to understand these biases and use them in their own work.

Contributors

Butch Kinerney

Butch Kinerney, FEMA Butch Kinerney is Chief of Marketing and Outreach for the National Flood Insurance Program within the Federal Emergency Management Agency. In that role, he oversees the multimillion-dollar Customer-Centric Communications initiative to educate home and business property owners about the necessity of protecting themselves against the financial devastation wrought by floods. He also oversees all customer communications for the Federal Insurance Directorate within the Federal Insurance and Mitigation Administration. Since 2012, he’s been an integral part of implementing of legislative changes to the NFIP. Butch has served in many capacities since joining FEMA in 2004: as chief of strategic communications for the Federal Insurance and Mitigation Administration where he oversaw efforts to help communities and the public build safer, stronger and smarter to lessen the impact of natural and manmade disasters. He has served as spokesperson for the National Flood Insurance Program, spokesperson for FEMA’s Mitigation Division and he received a battlefield appointment to FEMA Press Secretary during the 2005 hurricane season immediately following the departure of FEMA senior staff in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. He’s also been a field disaster information officer for a number of hurricanes, tornadoes, floods and other events.
Christine Gralher

Christine Gralher is a Coastal Engineer with a master’s degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Delaware where she graduated in 2012. She joined Stantec in 2018. Her background is in riverine/ coastal dynamics and her experience includes the numerical modeling of coastal processes to assess sediment transport, surge, wave, and hydrodynamic behavior in coastal environments. Besides her contribution to design projects in coastal environments, Christine has been extensively involved in coastal studies for several FEMA Regions (Region I, II, III, IV, V, VI, and IX) over the past 9 years.
Griffin Smith

Griffin Smith directs behavioral science across Ogilvy’s support of FEMA’s Community Engagement and Risk Communication program, helping increase the efficacy of efforts to increase risk understanding and action in communities across the country. Before joining Ogilvy, Griffin worked for ideas42, where he led teams focused on issues including climate adaptation, public transportation, renewable energy, and government training. Prior to that, Griffin worked as a policy advisor at MIT where he developed climate mitigation policies in Malaysia. While at MIT, Griffin also created and taught courses on negotiation and impact assessment. Griffin spent a summer in Utah as an MIT fellow piloting methods of discussing climate change with rural communities. Griffin has experience as non-profit negotiation and mediation consultant and helped stakeholders reach consensus decisions on a range of policy issues. Griffin holds a masters from MIT and a BA from Grinnell College.