5 Podcasts for Emergency Management Professionals – Emergency Management Degree Program Guide

January 30, 2019

The Top Five Podcasts Emergency Management Professionals Should Listen To

FEMA Podcast
Dukes of Hazards
Disaster Politics
EM Weekly
How I Built This

Emergencies happen all the time in the United States; from fires to floods, hurricanes to oil spills, the people of this country may be caught in a natural disaster before they know what’s happening. Thankfully, the United States is training more emergency management professionals to build up a workforce that is more than qualified to help in these situations. But their education doesn’t end with their education and training; most professionals look for other ways, including podcasts, to expand their insight into the field. Here are the top five podcasts that all emergency management professionals should add to their list.

FEMA Podcast

The Federal Emergency Management Agency, known as FEMA to most Americans, is an agency that is part of the Department of Homeland Security. It was established in 1979 and has since worked to provide relief and emergency services to people affected by natural and manmade disasters. Recently, FEMA has created a podcast that is dedicated to the emergency management profession as well as how the public can protect themselves in case of a disaster. Updated on a weekly basis, this is a great podcast for emergency professionals; each 30-minute episode provides insight into how FEMA works, making it easier for emergency management professionals to work with the federal government.

Dukes of Hazards

One of the best podcasts for emergency management professionals is Dukes of Hazards, a fun podcast that is aimed at being both informative and funny. The podcast, which debuted in December of 2014, focuses on a variety of subjects, including emergency management, community resilience, and what life is like for emergency management professionals. They are updated on the practices of the industry and do their best to engage the audience and their guests on every podcast. It is a great choice for current and upcoming professionals in the field, providing them with a glimpse into the life of an emergency management official and that they aren’t alone when they have burnout or feel frustrated in their careers.

Disaster Politics

Disaster Politics is a podcast that is hosted by Jeff Schlegelmilch and is focused on the interesting relationship between policy and legislation that affects emergency management, disaster preparedness, and response and recovery by professionals in the field. This podcast doesn’t just hear from emergency management professionals, however; guests include politicians, NGO directors, lawyers, activists, and more. This is a newer podcast, but there’s a lot of insight to be found in each episode.

EM Weekly

Another great podcast for emergency management professionals is EM Weekly’s Podcast, which is hosted by Todd De Voe. The podcast, which has been active since 2017 and is updated weekly, is a general podcast aimed at students, researchers and professionals in the emergency management profession. The program offers interviews, news, discussions on trends and more to its listeners and is one of the top series available for those in the emergency management field.

How I Built This

NPR’s How I Built This podcast is not marketed directly towards emergency management professionals, but rather to anyone who wants to learn more about business owners and how they run their businesses. The podcast, which has been live since 2016, picks one business each episode to discuss, including those who work in the nonprofit sector and in the private sector. This podcast is on the list because emergency management professionals, especially those in supervisory positions, will learn a lot about how to manage a team, work through conflict resolution, and more. Even if this doesn’t seem like a great fit for professionals in the field, give it a listen for three episodes. Most professionals will find they learned lessons relevant to their work that they never thought they’d find in a business podcast.

The truth is that it is hard to tell when a natural or manmade disaster is going to happen; this is demonstrated in the New York Times in an article discussing FEMA’s spending cycle during hurricane season. While some natural disasters appear after warnings, some come out of nowhere. This is when emergency management professionals are needed the most, and anything they can do to arm themselves with the skills and knowledge needed to do their job may end up help saving lives. The five podcasts written about above aren’t the only ones available, but it should help to serve as a way for professionals in the field to find the podcast that has the information they need for their careers.