Emerging Technology and Emergency Management

THE CHALLENGE

I have spent my career applying emergency management to new hazards, from cyberattacks to autonomous vehicles. Emergency managers increasingly use AI tools, technology companies face incidents that demand emergency management capabilities, and autonomous systems are creating risks existing frameworks were never designed for. Policy and practice have not kept pace.

THE APPROACH

- Analysis of automated vehicle incident management exercise programs, in partnership with Waymo

- Review of autonomous vehicle emergency response policy, training, and simulation practice

- Assessment of AI tools used in emergency management operations

- Comparison of significant cyber incident response with conventional emergency response, working with emergency managers

- Interviews with city officials on technology-related public-private partnerships

THE OUTCOME

An analysis of automated vehicle incident management exercise practices, coauthored with Waymo; guidance for decisionmakers on planning for significant cyber incidents.

Further reading

On Being Prepared: Automated Vehicle Incident Management Exercise Practices Waymo

The Role of AI in Meeting a Great Emergency Management Challenge Domestic Preparedness

Planning for Significant Cyber Incidents: An Introduction for Decisionmakers RAND Corporation

Preparing for a cyber-attack starts at the local level International Association of Emergency Managers