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Explore a recent addition to cIRcle’s collection: Understanding Disaster Preparedness in Vancouver: Community Perspectives. This report from UBC’s Disaster Resilience Research Network (DRRN) was created in collaboration with the City of Vancouver Emergency Management Agency (VEMA) and published in September 2025. Users can access the full report in cIRcle, as well as an additional summary and annexes for the report.
The report presents findings from a DRRN-led mixed-methods study with the goal of better understanding disaster preparedness and resilience across Vancouver from a community perspective. The information contained in the report was designed to support City of Vancouver initiatives to address barriers to disaster preparedness. It also offers guidelines for Vancouver residents regarding good disaster preparedness practices and informs them of ways to mitigate barriers affecting Vancouver communities, which include a lack of accessible information, practical knowledge gaps, and an overall lack of guidance around disaster preparedness practices. Additional insight about the report is also available through the DRRN’s project page.
More information about the report can also be found in a recent UBC News feature. This feature outlines several important aspects of the report’s results and provides further details about the UBC research team behind the process. These interdisciplinary research team members include Dr. Jonathan Eaton, the Executive Director of the DRRN and a postdoctoral fellow at the Department of Civil Engineering; Raahina Somani, a Master of Public Policy and Global Affairs alumna; Hang Cheng Ip, a Master of Public Policy & Global Affairs student; Michael Hooper, Associate Professor, School of Community & Regional Planning; Theodore Lim, Associate Professor, School of Community & Regional Planning; and Dr. Sara Shneiderman, the co-lead at DRRN and an Associate Professor at the Department of Anthropology and the School of Public Policy and Global Affairs.
The report has made an immediate impact upon release and currently has over 4,000 views and more than 500 downloads in cIRcle. It is featured via the City of Vancouver website, as well as shared through the UBC School of Community and Regional Planning News.
Related Works
More items related to disaster preparedness can also be found in cIRcle. This includes resources such as the Emergency Pantry Purchasing Guide, an undergraduate project created as part of the SEEDS (Social Ecological Economic Development Studies) sustainability program that provides recommendations on how to stock a pantry in preparation for all types of emergencies.
cIRcle also features materials that focus on specific types of disasters, including Earthquake Preparedness in BC Libraries : Best Practices from Abroad, a video presentation by a UBC graduate student that offers libraries (and other organizations) effective approaches for earthquake preparedness.
Another related work includes Planning Resilient Communities and Adapting Rural Health Services in British Columbia : A response to climate change and ecosystem disruption, a collaborative effort between the UBC Faculty of Medicine’s Rural Health Services Research Network of B.C. and the Centre for Rural Health Research. This chapter series explores how rural communities can build resilience and prepare climate change disaster mitigation strategies in a growing hazard landscape.
Deposit Your Research
Are you a UBC faculty member or student interested in making your research openly accessible? Please consult our Submissions page for information about adding your work to cIRcle!
Further Reading
PreparedBC emergency guides and resources. Government of British Columbia. Updated March 5, 2025. Accessed October 16, 2025.
Personal & community preparedness. University of British Columbia. Accessed October 16, 2025.