Emergency Preparedness Online,
Fifth Edition

A resource directory for emergency preparedness, response, recovery, and accessible communications

Disability Funders Network

A. General Information

Formally established in 1994, the Disability Funders Network (DFN) is a national membership and philanthropic advocacy organization that seeks equality and rights for disabled individuals and communities by bridging philanthropic resources, disability and community. DFN acts to accomplish its goals by:

• Serving as a resource for grant makers and community groups to increase and strengthen institutional giving to disability communities.
• Providing regular and reliable research on philanthropy about — and to — disability communities
• Bringing together and broadening the base of disability funders to improve grant making and organizational capacity for disability rights.

DFN posts an informative website that features disability related statistics, an archive of their e-news releases, a list of downloadable DFN publications, an event calendar, and numerous resources and links. The Disability Funders Network recently launched an initiative called Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Relief For People with Disabilities and Older Adults.

B. DFN’s Preparedness Initiative

The Disability Funders Network runs a continuing project known as Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Relief For People with Disabilities and Older Adults. The initiative was established to ensure that foundations and corporations have the information they need in order to include people with disabilities and older adults in their efforts to address emergency preparedness and to conduct disaster grantmaking. The project covers:

1. Grantmaking for emergency preparedness, disaster response, and longer term recovery
2. Convening community groups to gather information and address preparation, response and recovery
3. Raising the level of awareness of emergency preparedness issues (both within the philanthropic and nonprofit communities and general public awareness)
4. Foundations' own internal disaster planning as well as planning-related advice they offer their grantees and applicants.

DFN posts a webpage with disability related emergency preparedness information including resources, links, and downloadable publications. Also, there is an article entitled September 11 and the DFN Initiative.

C. Disaster Relief

The DFN website features a good deal of information regarding disaster relief efforts. Throughout the site there is information about disaster response efforts to national catastrophes such as Hurricane Katrina and the September 11th attacks. The DFN homepage also offers a link to a recent article entitled Philanthropic Response to the Southern California Wildfires. This directory provides information regarding established relief funds, recovery efforts, and how to make an individual donation. The site is posted by the Southern California Grantmakers, a non-profit association which serves as a common voice for a diverse community of philanthropists.