"Ready—Or Not": Cultural Heritage Disaster Preparedness Project

• What happens at a full-day site visit consultation?

An emergency preparedness consultant travels to each site for a full-day consultation (9am-4pm). The agenda includes an introduction and discussion of emergency preparedness goals, followed by a 3-hour Q&A session on past incidents, current practices, and risk assessment. After lunch, there is a facilities walkthrough, and a wrap-up meeting for final questions, impressions, and next steps. If the walkthrough takes 2-3 hours, a full-day is suitable for your organization.

• Can my organization meet for a half-day consultation?

An emergency preparedness consultant can visit for a half-day (e.g. 10 am to 2:30 pm). The agenda has a flexible schedule but is meant to include a 3-hour Q&A session on past incidents, current practices, and risk assessment. There is a brief facilities walkthrough. If the entire building, including cultural heritage storage, can be seen in 30-60 minutes during the walkthrough, the half-day option is suitable for your organization. If some staff or volunteers are present for part of the day, the schedule can be adjusted to meet their availability.

• We have offsite storage and multiple locations. Can you visit all my sites?

Yes, if you are a multi-site organization that holds several locations under one entity, we can plan to visit each site. Please provide the number of branches, buildings, or offsite storage locations to be assessed. This will help us schedule one or more days for site visits to cover all locations. We will tailor the consultation schedule to accommodate your organization's needs.

• What staff need to be at the consultation?

We encourage attendance from as many staff and volunteers as possible, particularly those in Collections, Facilities, and Operations, during the consultation. If some individuals need to arrive or leave mid-day, the consultant will adjust the agenda to accommodate their participation. For instance, if the facilities manager can only join for an hour, we will prioritize covering facility-related questions and walkthroughs during that time. If your team is small (one or two members), we still encourage as many people as possible to attend and actively participate in the disaster planning process, including the site visit consultation and assessment.

• Can my organization really participate if we only have one staff/volunteer or a small collection?

YES! "Ready – Or Not" encourages small organizations to participate. We work with your small organization to determine what your disaster planning needs are and how much capacity your staff or volunteers have to carry out recommended actions.

• What do we discuss at the site visit?

The discussion focuses on past incidents, current practices, and risk assessment for building, collections, and human safety.

• What is in the report after the consultation?

The Emergency Preparedness Assessment Report provides observations and recommendations for various areas, such as business continuity, IT security, physical building security, protection of collections, facilities risk mitigation, water and fire protection, and human safety. The report, tailored specifically to your organization, includes best practices and actionable recommendations to minimize risks, plan and prepare for disasters, and effectively respond. Additionally, the report includes an Appendix with valuable resources to support your organization's disaster plan.

• When will the consultant send the report?

You receive an Emergency Preparedness Assessment Report about two weeks after your site visit consultation.

• How long do organization staff or volunteers have to make edits to the report?

We encourage organization staff or volunteers to review our Emergency Preparedness Assessment Report and make any factual corrections within three months of the visit.

> Calabasas Library

Having faced wildfire-related evacuations in the past, the Calabasas Library recognizes the critical need for proactive disaster preparedness and long-term collections care.

In December 2023, the library staff participated in a “Ready—Or Not” emergency preparedness assessment to strengthen the protection of its Special Collections and improve institutional resilience. 

During the on-site assessment, Emergency Preparedness Consultant Mario A. Gallardo discussed the staff’s emergency preparedness goals, past incidents, current practices, and a facilities walkthrough. After the visit, the staff received a customized emergency preparedness report. 

Based on the recommendations, the library successfully secured a 2024 Groundworks Grant to implement key improvements, including:

• Archival-quality supplies for the rehousing of Special Collections
  
• Risers to elevate materials during potential environmental hazards
  
• Equipment for inventorying and cataloging rare items
  
• Workplace safety gear and spill response kits
  
• Backup external hard drives for digital preservation
  
• Environmental monitoring tools for better collections management

In addition to physical improvements, the Calabasas Library created and distributed customized Pocket Response Plans (PRR) for all the staff—a foundational step in enhancing disaster response and continuity of operations.

Thanks to the “Ready—Or Not” initiative and the Groundworks Grant, Calabasas Library staff are better equipped to safeguard their collections and ensure the library remains a resilient resource for the community.

> Corita Art Center

The Corita Art Center, newly located in the Arts District in Downtown Los Angeles, prides itself on a collection of Corita Kent's serigraphs, watercolors, 35 mm slides, and archival materials. The Center requested a visit in May 2024, emphasizing a concern for better storage practices and mitigating harsh light damage on their materials. 

During the on-site assessment, Emergency Preparedness Consultant Mario A. Gallardo discussed the staff’s emergency preparedness goals, past incidents, current practices, and a facilities walkthrough. After the visit, the staff received a customized emergency preparedness report. 

With the assistance of a 2024 Groundworks Grant, they improved their storage capabilities and environmental control in their spaces. This included funds for shelving, an emergency kit, a spill kit, and materials for rehousing and evacuations. Additionally, they have improved their documentation efforts by developing comprehensive disaster preparedness plans, ensuring that staff, collections, and their space have the necessary assistance to persevere in the event of a disaster. 

Corita Art Center and its staff join one of the many participants of the "Ready—Or Not" project who put their best foot forward in accomplishing the steps necessary to protect their collections, staff, and space.