Institute for Public Strategies Awarded $250,000 to Strengthen Disaster Preparedness Across Southern California
The Institute for Public Strategies (IPS) announced today that it has been awarded $250,000 through the Listos California Regional Grant Program – Southern, administered by the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES). The grant supports Ready California, formerly known as Listos California, and will fund culturally responsive disaster preparedness education across San Diego, Los Angeles, San Bernardino, and Riverside Counties through December 31, 2027.
The initiative will focus on communities that face disproportionate barriers before, during, and after emergencies, including immigrant and refugee families, households with limited English proficiency, older adults, people with disabilities, and those living in rural or geographically isolated areas. IPS will bring practical preparedness information into trusted community settings, including schools, faith institutions, community centers, and neighborhood gatherings.
IPS will recruit and train Community Resilience Ambassadors through its existing networks, including youth coalitions, promotora networks, community-based organizations, schools, faith institutions, and local colleges. Through this peer-to-peer approach, Ambassadors will use culturally and linguistically appropriate Ready California materials to help community members prepare for wildfires, earthquakes, extreme heat, and other emergencies.
“IPS has long worked alongside communities to strengthen health and safety, and this grant allows us to deepen and expand that work in community resilience,” said Brenda Simmons, Chief Executive Officer of IPS. “By pairing Ready California resources with trusted local relationships, we can support communities across Southern California as they prepare for, respond to, and recover from emergencies in ways that reflect their unique needs.”
Through community-based workshops and outreach, IPS and its Ambassadors will help community members develop household emergency plans, enroll in emergency alerts, understand evacuation routes, prepare emergency supply kits, and connect with preparedness and recovery resources. By combining standardized preparedness resources with local knowledge and trusted relationships, IPS aims to help residents move beyond awareness and take concrete actions that strengthen household and neighborhood readiness.
The project reflects IPS’s growing work at the intersection of public health and community resilience and builds on the organization’s long-standing experience engaging communities through trusted messengers and locally driven solutions.
The Institute for Public Strategies promotes health and shapes policy by inspiring community-driven change. Since 1992, IPS has worked alongside communities to strengthen local leadership, advance health equity, and create safer, more resilient environments.
Contact:
Brittany Hunsinger
Institute for Public Strategies
(619) 476-9100 ext. 122
bhunsinger@publicstrategies.org
