CASE STUDIES

Building Community Disaster Preparedness with Volunteers:Community Emergency Response Teams in Illinois

Courtney G. Flint1 and Joanne Stevenson2

Abstract: The community emergency response team �CERT� program is an attempt to facilitate citizen response and preparedness acrossthe United States. Predisaster planning and preparedness, as embodied in the CERT program, is becoming increasingly pertinent for thoseinterested in decreasing the immediate and long-term, individual and community impacts of disasters. The study highlighted in this paperevaluated CERTs in the state of Illinois. In-depth interviews and short telephone surveys with local, county, and state CERT and CitizenCorps coordinators were conducted to understand the various roles that Illinois CERTs play in their communities. Programs varied fromtraining active volunteer emergency responders to more supportive roles behind traditional first responders and nearly all saw roles forbuilding community capacity in nondisaster programmatic functions. Rural CERTs differed from those in urban and suburban areas intheir perceived need for self-sufficiency and lower reliance upon or availability of formal infrastructure and resources. Common chal-lenges and future recommendations are discussed.

DOI: 10.1061/�ASCE�NH.1527-6996.0000014

CE Database subject headings: Community development; Disaster recovery; Emergency services; Rural areas; Urban areas;Volunteers; Illinois.

Author keywords: Community development; Disaster relief; Emergency services; Rural areas; Urban areas; Volunteers.

Introduction

From 2001 to 2007, there were 14 declared disasters in Illinois�FEMA 2008�. Most of these events were severe storms or flood-ing, which affected people in each of the 102 counties throughoutthe state. According to the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment�2005�, disasters such as these are likely to increase in frequencyand intensity in the future, forcing governments to search formore effective emergency management techniques. A growingemphasis has been placed on the necessity of community pre-paredness and a level of local independence during these times ofneed. A truly effective community response involves mobiliza-tion, preparedness, and reducing vulnerabilities before a disasterever threatens. Case studies on disaster response indicate thatlocal volunteer efforts coupled with public sector support can im-prove local preparedness �Simpson and Strang 2004; Stehr 2001�.

Today, community emergency response teams �CERTs� facili-tate citizen response and preparedness and community engage-ment throughout America �Brennan and Flint 2007; Flint andBrennan 2006; Simpson 2001�. The CERT is a community basedprogram initiated in the United States in 1985 and designed to

1Professor, Dept. of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences,Univ. of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, 1102 S. Goodwin Ave., Urbana,IL 61801 �corresponding author�. E-mail: cflint@illinois.edu

2Dept. of Geography, Univ. of South Carolina, Hazard VulnerabilityResearch Institute, 709 Bull Street, Columbia, SC 29208.

Note. This manuscript was submitted on September 26, 2008; ap-proved on December 10, 2009; published online on December 15, 2009.Discussion period open until January 1, 2011; separate discussions mustbe submitted for individual papers. This paper is part of the NaturalHazards Review, Vol. 11, No. 3, August 1, 2010. ©ASCE, ISSN 1527-

6988/2010/3-118–124/$25.00.

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enhance local emergency management. Predisaster planning, pre-paredness, and citizen involvement as embodied in the CERTprogram are critical to decreasing the immediate and long-termimpacts of disasters.

Following a brief review of literature on community emer-gency preparedness and disaster response and information aboutthe federal CERT program, this paper describes interpretationsand applications of the CERT program in Illinois. In-depth andshort interviews with local, county, and state CERT and CitizenCorps Council �CCC� coordinators were conducted between Oc-tober 2006 and February 2007 with three objectives: �1� to under-stand the roles played by CERTs in their communities throughoutIllinois; �2� to distinguish between urban and rural communityinterpretations of CERT roles and activities; and �3� to highlightconstraints to efficacy faced in these programs.

Background Literature and Information

In light of the rising cost of disaster preparation and recoverythere has been an increasing amount of attention paid to makingdisaster response more effective and efficient �Sapat 2001�. This,along with exposure of inadequacies of national and internationalresponses, has led many academics and governmental and non-governmental agencies to look at community based disasterpreparation and response �Flint and Brennan 2006; Schafer et al.2008; Simpson 2001; Stehr 2001; Tootle 2007�. Having a“community-based approach” to disaster mitigation, response,and recovery means that organizations embedded in the affectedarea can begin the recovery process as soon as the disaster occurs�King 2007�.

Hennessy �1998� highlighted the importance of requiring com-

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munities to participate or take responsibility in every stage of anemergency management program. Suggestions for effective waysto work with the community include forming partnerships basedon respect and trust and empowering the community throughtraining and information �Hennessy 1998�. The necessity of com-munity involvement and developing local capacity before andduring large-scale disasters is critical. Berke et al. �1993� assertedthat external aid programs are inadequate and can often overlookmajor local needs. Localities need to develop their internal ca-pacities to respond to disasters before they can effectively receiveand apply external aid �Berke et al. 1993; Stehr 2001; Schafer etal. 2008�. Rubin �1991� argued that excessive dependence on ex-ternal resources after a disaster can cause a loss of local controland actually slow the recovery process. The resiliency and adap-tive capacity of a community as a whole is enhanced by usinglocal knowledge, skills, and access to resources �Haque and Etkin2007�. More recent U.S. experience with Hurricanes Katrina andRita exposed limitations associated with an overreliance on fed-eral response without considerable local organization and coop-eration �Rubin 2007�. In addition, community specific planningand organization help to incorporate the wide variations in localneeds, conditions, and capacities �Schafer et al. 2008�. Researchon community responses to risk and disaster has tended to focuson either rural �Tootle 2007� or urban �Mitchell 1999� locations.Cross �2001� highlighted differences between rural and urban set-tings in emergency response capacities as well as social, environ-mental, and institutional vulnerabilities and called for morecomparative research to understand these differences and theirrelated policy and programmatic needs.

CERTs

In 1979 an executive order by President Jimmy Carter establishedthe Federal Emergency Management Agency �FEMA�. As theFEMA was centralizing and streamlining its approach to disasterresponse, emphasizing an “all-hazards approach,” the Los Ange-les Fire Department was looking for a way to spread disasterpreparedness to individual citizens. In 1985, Los Angeles cityofficials observed and adapted a community program from Tokyowhich tested citizen skills and response during and after an earth-quake �Simpson 2001�. The Los Angeles CERT program providedan impetus for the development of the current national CERTprogram. Early CERTs were tailored by specific neighborhoodsand focused on responding to a variety of local emergencies,while fostering community ownership of and pride in the organi-zation �Simpson 2001�.

The model of citizen engagement in emergency preparednessspread throughout California at a grassroots level. In 1993, theFEMA began offering a “CERT Train-the-Trainer” �TtT� course atthe Emergency Management Institute in Emmetsburg, Md. Theadoption of the CERT program by the FEMA standardized theprogram throughout the nation and increased the validity of citi-zen training in the eyes of first responders �Simpson 2001�. TheCERT program proceeded to grow throughout the nation enteringa period of rapid expansion after 2001 reflecting federal supportthrough training standardization and grant funding programs. In2002, President George W. Bush launched the U.S.A. FreedomCorps in order to strengthen and organize various volunteer ser-vice organizations sponsored by the federal government. CitizenCorps is a U.S.A. Freedom Corps program which supports train-ing, education, and volunteer opportunities to enhance communitysafety and emergency management.

The CERT program is currently situated within the CCC pro-

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gram, which is a national network of state and local communityoriented councils focused on various security issues. The CERTprogram in the United States grew tremendously from fewer than200 teams in 2001 to over 3,200 as of June 2009 �Citizen Corps2007�. Citizen Corps offers general guidelines and a set of mod-ules and teaching materials for the basic CERT class. They alsoadminister the TtT course for those who wish to teach the CERTprogram. The CERT TtT program and CERT guides and trainingmodules are the primary directives of what the CERT program isdesigned to do. The overarching objectives for the CERT programare highlighted on the CCC website:

“First, present citizens the facts about what to expect fol-lowing a major disaster in terms of immediate services.Second, give the message about their responsibility formitigation and preparedness. Third, train them in neededlife saving skills with emphasis on decision-making skills,rescuer safety, and doing the greatest good for the greatestnumber. Fourth, organize teams so that they are an exten-sion of first responder services offering immediate help tovictims until professional services arrive.”

The required training focuses on the preparation for and re-sponse to major natural disasters and terrorist attacks and typi-cally takes about 20 h. Current CERT training modules includethe following units: disaster preparedness; fire safety; disastermedical operations; advanced disaster medical operations; lightsearch and rescue operations; CERT organization; disaster psy-chology; terrorism and CERT; and disaster simulation. There arealso several supplementary appendixes covering the response toparticular types of natural and technological hazards includingearthquakes, excessive heat, floods, severe storms, tsunamis, andhazardous materials incidents among others.

The training modules standardize the administration of theprogram to create a baseline of information for CERTs nationally.It is recognized, however, that despite the all-hazards approachpromoted by the FEMA and Citizen Corps, different localitiesmay choose to adapt their CERT program to suit their needs. TheCitizen Corps’ description of a CERT highlights the importancefor a CERT to determine how it wants to be organized and usedwithin the community before it begins to train volunteers �CitizenCorps 2007�.

This freedom to adapt locally means that, despite standardizedtraining, the CERT coordinators and members may develop theroles of their CERT different from other CERTs, including howCERTs serve their communities and the activities they are in-volved in. Brennan et al. �2005, p. 53� asserted that local residentsare well situated to “identify their immediate needs, coordinatepreparations, supplement official response efforts, implementemergency response programs, and contribute to local decisionmaking for future events.” Area residents may have experiencedprevious disasters and response, may know the area better, andare well situated to be at the front lines of defense �Brennan et al.2005�. When implemented fully, CERTs can provide a mechanismfor “increasing the quality of life, improving local resiliency, andcreating consensus building at a local level” �Simpson 2001, p.62�.

Illinois CERTs

Illinois is characterized by having the third largest city in theUnited States, Chicago, expansive suburban areas, as well as a

very substantial rural agricultural region. This diverse geographi-

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cal context provides an interesting backdrop for evaluating theroles of CERT programs and constraints faced by coordinators.Far more people live in urban or suburban areas in Illinois than inrural areas, with around 88% of the nearly 12.5 million Illinoisresidents living in urban areas or census designated urban clus-ters, defined as areas with a core of greater than 1,000 people persquare mile and surrounding areas with at least 500 people persquare mile �U.S. Census Bureau Geography Division 2008�.

Several factors make the distinction between the emergencyresponse in rural areas and emergency response in urban areaspertinent. Nationally, rural areas are often characterized by pov-erty, a loss of younger skilled residents, and less education thanurban areas, which shape the capacity of communities to handlethe short- and long-term effects of disaster �Flint and Brennan2006�. Rural areas are also more likely to rely on volunteer policeand fire departments, which are suffering volunteer shortagesaround the country �Adamshick and Barishansky 2005�. For thesereasons, despite their “simpler hazardscape” �Mitchell 1999�, thecapacity of rural areas to respond to disasters may be limited. Inthese communities, the CERT program may be found especiallyuseful and the interviews described in this paper provide insightinto the way the CERT program is being adapted differently forurban and rural areas in Illinois.

Methodology

The identification of Illinois CERTs was made using the nationalCERT online registry between October 2006 and February 2007and was clarified through the data collection process. During thedata collection period, 15 local CERT points of contact and onestate coordinator were listed on the online CERT directory. Fiveother CERT coordinators were identified by participants duringinterviews yielding an initial sample size of 20 CERTs. In-depthphone interviews were conducted with 18 coordinators and twointerviews were conducted by e-mail at the coordinator’s request.The exact same questions were asked in both formats. This set ofCERTs includes programs from six rural, eight suburban, and sixurban locations as defined by the coordinators.

The Illinois Citizen Corps and CERT state coordinator com-municated to us that there were 65 CERTs in Illinois in 2007. Thiswas never verified and contact lists were not made available. Fol-lowing the interview study and in order to clarify the total numberof CERTs, additional short interviews were conducted with 22CCC coordinators who could be reached by phone. Questionsreferred directly to whether or not they had a CERT program, thetype of local setting �urban, rural, or suburban�, and a few shortquestions about the nature of existing CERT programs. The mapof CERTs in Illinois in Fig. 1 is based upon the best availableinformation in February 2007. With the addition of the short tele-phone interview component, we positively identified 45 CERTs inIllinois. There is considerable flux and uncertainty regarding thetotal number of CERTs in the state of Illinois, but our contact with20 CERT and 22 CCC coordinators produced the most viable listof CERTs available at that time. The spatial distribution of knownCERTs at the time of this research shows a large concentration inthe greater Chicago area with rural programs dotted throughoutthe state �see Fig. 1�. Findings presented in this paper are basedon interactions with 42 CERT and CCC coordinators �20 in-depthinterviews and 22 short interviews�. It should be noted that allquotes are from CERT coordinators and are kept anonymous tocomply with institutional review board requirements.

Telephone interviews were digitally recorded and later tran-

scribed. All interview transcriptions were analyzed thematically

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for qualitative content �Dunn 2000�. Questions for the in-depthCERT coordinator interviews included inquiries about the roles,functions, goals, and limitations of the CERT programs, their ac-tivation history, and perceptions about the role of the CERT pro-gram in their community. Additional short CCC interviews addedinformation about the location and general orientation of addi-tional CERTs.

Results and Discussion

CERT RolesKey informant interviews with Illinois CERT coordinators re-vealed clear differences in the way Citizen Corps defined theCERT program and the way coordinators perceived the role ofCERTs within their communities. The CERT program is still rela-tively new in Illinois. Only 15 of the 45 CERTs identified hadbeen in existence for at least 3 years. Many of these programswere still in their developmental stages at the time of this study.There are discrepancies among CERT coordinators and informa-tion from state and national agencies about where developmentaldirection should come from.

The responsibility to develop these programs ultimately fallsto the individual CERTs. The Illinois Citizen Corps administratordescribed the CERT program as open to interpretation by eachprogram:

“We do not restrict them on any ways to do it because oneway will work in one county and it won’t work in another.So we do not try to put too much restriction on thembecause it really does not help the program any.”

Eighty percent �16 of 20� of the CERT coordinators inter-

Fig. 1. Distribution of CERTs in Illinois as of February 2007

viewed in depth planned to take advantage of the flexibility to

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adapt the program to meet the needs of their community includingoffering additional training outside of the CERT curriculum, par-ticipating in nonemergency community events, or offeringadapted or abbreviated versions of the CERT training. However,three coordinators noted that a more definitive federal or state rolewould be helpful for the program’s success. This quote from aCERT coordinator describes the paradox related to the lack ofdirection from the federal program:

“I would like there to be a directive from the nationalCitizen Corps on what they want to see. They pretty muchgo and let us do whatever we want, that is why everyonedoes things a little bit differently . . . I think there wouldprobably be a little more structure, but it is a doubleedged sword. We do not want them telling us too much,but we want some direction.”

This flexibility and lack of structure is reflected in how CERTsapproach the “team” aspect of the program. Interviews revealedthat two CERTs chose to focus exclusively on the educationalaspect of the CERT program, with no intention of developingteams to be activated for emergencies, assemble for future retrain-ing, or participate in other community events together. On theother hand, 55% �11 of 20� of the CERTs studied consideredthemselves “team” units, frequently retrained, and went beyondthe roles outlined by Citizen Corps. Thus, the emphasis placed onthe team aspect of the CERTs varies. However, only one CERTprogram required �before offering the training� any commitmentor participation beyond the initial 20-h CERT training. Graduatesof the program can apply the acquired knowledge to their ownlives, but are not expected to be involved in any community-wideefforts. Therefore, the way individual CERTs define their roleswithin their community is an important factor in understandinghow the CERT program is being used, its limits, and its potential.

In the in-depth interview, respondents were asked “What doyou feel is the role of your CERT in the community?” The mostprevalent theme that emerged was the CERT program’s role ineducating and preparing individuals to help themselves, families,and neighbors during a major natural disaster or terrorist attack.These ideas mirror the Citizen Corps defined roles for the CERTprogram. The following quotes illustrate that the perceived role ofmany of the CERTs is consistent with the training they receive:

• “The role of the CERT is basically to make sure thatpeople have the training for themselves and their familiesand neighbors first, for the first 72 h following a disasteror emergency.”

• “It teaches people how to take care of themselves . . . itteaches them the basic survival skills in the event of amajor incident, along the lines of Katrina. One of theterms I heard bandied around in a major event is“YOYO”—you’re on your own. In a major event, thestatewide resources that we have are going to be tied towhere they are. There are not going to be any immediateoutside resources available in the event of a major inci-dent. Like a pandemic flu, it is YOYO, you’ve got tofigure it out.”

Coordinators emphasized the role of CERTs in major disasters,also underscoring, as the FEMA does, the concept of CERT train-ing being used by individuals when the normal response infra-structure is overwhelmed. Three of 20 coordinators indicated thatCERT members were unlikely to be used to aid first responders in

a response capacity in the event of a major disaster, and that

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education about protecting oneself and their family in the event ofa disaster was likely the extent of this CERT program’s utility.Concern was expressed about the current program’s ability toprepare the members to effectively aid disaster response beyondensuring their personal and their family’s safety:

“Until there is a lot more structure, I think, within thestate or within municipalities you are not going to seeCERT teams called for as such. In the event that we havea major incident of anything of any place in the area, I amgoing to call the police department. I am going to call thefire department. . . . You will not, in my opinion, be seeinga lot of CERT teams called . . . I think the prime role isself-education, self-awareness.”

However, 80% �16/20� of coordinators perceived their CERTas having the capacity to coordinate an active, team-oriented re-sponse in disaster situations or in some way be effective aids forfirst responders. These CERTs used follow-up training and man-datory refresher courses to allow members to build on what theylearn in the initial CERT training. Eighteen of the 20 CERTs fromthe in-depth interviews responded that they offered or planned onoffering retraining or supplementary courses for their graduates.Many of these classes give the CERT members a much broaderability to assist in a range of emergency and nonemergency situ-ations:

“We constantly retrain. We do CPR review annually. . . . Ijust redid cribbing last meeting; we do first aid at leasttwice a year. We are having a weather class for us andthe surrounding communities in January. . . . We have aHam �radio� class. Some of our members are Ham certi-fied . . . all Citizen Corps has to be NIMS compliant, Na-tional Incident Management System.”

Coordinators largely perceived the role of their CERTs as aid-ing first responders and having an active part in communitypreparation and response to disaster. Expanding the basic CERTtraining and reuniting program graduates, often several times ayear, is an indication that these CERTs believe they have a largerrole to play in disaster response than just personal and familypreparedness.

CERT coordinators identified other program roles beyond di-saster response. These roles included support for local first re-sponders during local nondisaster emergencies such as clearingdrains during storms or bringing firefighters refreshments during afire. They also highlighted the role of CERT trainees in the com-munity as educators of the general public such as providing safetydemonstrations at local fairs or manning information booths.

Community Capacity BuildingThough there was disagreement among coordinators about theteam element of CERTs �emphasis on individuals versus main-taining a team approach over time�, every coordinator interviewedthought the CERT program enhanced a community’s ability toprepare for and deal with emergencies and disasters on an indi-vidual or community scale. It is also significant, however, that allbut one of the CERT coordinators interviewed identified roles thatCERTs already do or could potentially fill outside of emergencyresponse. Whether it was distributing information at communityevents or directing traffic during 4th of July fireworks, coordina-tors felt that CERTs can and should be used beyond the CitizenCorps defined roles of disaster preparedness and response.

Coordinators described the importance of keeping their mem-

bers active and engaged. Over half �14� of the 20 coordinators

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indicated that their CERT participated in community activitiesand that they would like to participate in community activities inthe future. Participating in nonemergency events such as directingtraffic at town events or distributing and installing carbon mon-oxide detectors for senior citizens and the disabled were seen asimportant services to the community. CERTs can act in a widevariety of roles that may contribute to the sense of community, aperception of safety and well-being of the community, and fostera spirit of response to community issues that goes beyond disasterpreparedness �Flint and Brennan 2006�. Coordinators revealed adiverse array of nondisaster functions:

• “We do many community activities including fairs, help-ing with village events, educational seminars. . . . KIDSSafety Camp and Junior Citizens Police Academy. . . . Wedo traffic control on occasion. At the camps, JCPA, CPA,FAA, we help with set up, day to day materials, gettingsome of the materials needed for the program and we alsodo some demonstrations on safety and making kits.”

• “Luckily we have never been activated. . . . However,we use them . . . no less than a dozen to 15 times a year.Like Saturday we had two events. We have got the TurkeyTrot that comes on Thanksgiving morning, where they askfor our help; and the Jaycees are people that ask for ourhelp; the park district asks for our help; the WINGs �theabused women’s clinic�. They ask for our help when theygo on their runs. Any civic organizations that have foundout that we have manpower, they ask us to help out.”

Similarly, the concept of diverse groups working together in acooperative effort enhances the knowledge and experiencebrought to the CERT and helps strengthen community bonds. Thegeneral context and training foci of the CERT program make itpossible to incorporate a broad range of community members:

“We literally have never turned away anybody from ourCERT team that met the age or passed the backgroundcheck. We have an 83-year-old couple . . . the wife is aretired nurse; the husband is a veteran from WWII. . . .We have 14 year olds that have joined the class with theirparents. . . . We have Spanish speaking people; a severelybrain damaged person. . . . I guess I look at our CERTteam different from Red Cross and other agencies, in thatwe are a boat that floats in our community, and all ofthese people, their specialtiest . . . rises the whole boat ofthe community’s ability to perform or take care of eachother in a disaster.”

Coordinators admitted that they hope to be preparing for situ-ations that will never happen, but while waiting for these situa-tions, they felt that their CERT had a capability to provide a largerange of services to their community. Four coordinators expresseda desire to see the CERT program expand and realize a broadercapacity to train and equip members, reassessing and enhancingthe CERTs roles as they develop their program.

Integration with official emergency management improves theCERTs’ ability to utilize their wide range of skills and participatein community activities. CERTs having both financial supportfrom their town or county as well as a sense of appreciation forthe services they provide tended to be more active in emergencyresponse roles and additional community activities.

Urban-Rural DifferencesInterviews revealed that perceptions and roles of CERTs were

influenced by their urban/suburban or rural situation. CERTs in

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more urban or suburban settings often have a larger infrastructureto work with. This can be both positive and negative for CERTs.Coordinators in suburban areas surrounding Chicago describedtheir role as supporting professional emergency responders whenthey are overwhelmed or overseeing ancillary jobs to free up thefirst responders in case of emergency. In rural areas, coordinatorscommented more on the need for self-sufficiency after a majordisaster. A major contrast was found between the description ofthe CERT program in major urban settings and small rural townsin Southern Illinois. One urban CERT coordinator stated:

“�Our city� is unique in that we do have an insane amountof resources and so that kind of makes the utility of aprogram like CERT difficult. Not to say that it is not anymore or less useful in �our city� than in more rural placesbut it does present a challenge . . . because �it� is a city ofneighborhoods, I think there could be a need to have moreteams, but then on the contrary side I think that �the city�has such a strong fire department presence again, the kindof response capabilities CERT can bring to bear is oftenkind of reduced or relied upon in the same way that arural community would rely on their CERT teams.”

Rural areas rely more heavily on their CERT programs for alarger variety of emergency response activities because they donot have the same level of infrastructure as urban programs. Al-though the CERT referred to below appeared to be unique in itsorganization with adequate resources and funding, it is a goodexample of how rural CERTs can be used:

“At any given time we only have one police officer onduty; sometimes during the day we have two. If anythinggoes on in town it is �our community emergency manage-ment� people that take care of it. . . . We just received theaward last Sunday from the �town� council of churches.An appreciation award is given annually. . . . There were alot of articles in the paper after July �following a severestorm� because without �our team� the community wouldhave had real problems. We activated right away; westarted going around doing damage assessment; we gotwater in; we got shelters open.”

Rural CERT coordinators more readily acknowledged that firstresponders and resources might not be able to reach them follow-ing a major disaster. On the other hand, in urban or suburbanareas, the perception of being lost in the mix of a large responseeffort was also voiced as an issue:

“We try to really put it out there that Homeland Securityis ‘my’ responsibility. My family is ‘my’ responsibility,and it is not because we do not believe first responders donot want to come and help, because they do. It is just thatthey may not be able to render assistance as quickly; wehave all been taught to dial 9-1-1. Well, that’s great, butwhen you have 50,000 other people dialing 9-1-1 at thesame time you may get a recording that says ‘Your call isvery important to us and it will be answered in the orderin which it is received’ and then we are all aware of howthat feels.”

CERTs can serve as a resource to pull areas together and givecommunities a sense of independence and self-reliance. Simpson�2001� asserted that CERTs promote the sustainability frameworkof improving local resiliency and enhancing consensus building atthe local level. This is especially important in areas that have

suffered economic losses. One coordinator said:

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“�Our� county is a very agricultural county. We have losta lot of industry. Texaco used to be here and we have lostthat; now we are a very poor county.”

Factors such as poverty and limited resource access can in-crease a community’s vulnerability to disaster, but this societalvulnerability can be reduced through public education and en-hancing adaptive capability �Haque and Etkin 2007�. The CERTprogram not only offers vital services to a community at, often-times, lower cost, but can also draw people together during othercrises characteristic in rural areas such as economic difficultiesand loss of young and skilled residents �Flint and Brennan 2006�.Rural CERT coordinators mentioned an increased vulnerability tonatural or technological disasters because of their isolation andlack of resources. In response to the question, “Because you arefrom a rural area, do you think that CERT has a special place inyour community?” one respondent explained further:

“Yes. Because we are a rural area, we do not have a lot ofmoney; we have to have our own resources. We have tobe able to rely on ourselves. We do not have the popula-tion that a lot of other counties in the state does. Those ofus who are working on this realize that if a natural disas-ter happens in the state of Illinois, we are not going to befirst. We are going to be way down on the list.”

In response to the same question, another rural CERT coordi-nator noted that a program like CERT can play the role of gettingpeople to realize and prepare for their relative vulnerability duringa major disaster:

“We are a rural area. If something major happens most ofthe resources are going to the St. Louis or the Memphisarea because they are more populated areas. That is justreality. We have to be prepared to take care of ourselvesfor 3–5 days. Most of the community is not prepared;therefore, we need some type of community program inorder to ensure that the community will be able to betaken care of for that.”

The ability to influence the local residents and contribute tothe community at large was also influenced by the communitysetting, structure, and population. In larger communities and cit-ies, structuring the role of the CERT appeared to be very differentfrom smaller rural areas. In response to the question, “Do CERTshave a role in the community besides emergency response?” onesuburban CERT coordinator replied:

“Well, not really . . . I have not seen any community-widebenefit. We have got roughly 35,000 people in our com-munity and we have only a couple hundred peopletrained; it does not really have the impact on the commu-nity as such, except for when they assist.”

Both rural and urban/suburban CERT coordinators describedcreating neighborhood focused groups within their CERT team.The approach of creating a neighborhood system has the potentialto both increase the effectiveness of CERT response by focusingefforts in a specific area and help build community capacity. Arural CERT coordinator explains why they chose to keep theirCERT program neighborhood focused:

“I would say because what the CERT is set up to do, wewould like to keep it more like neighborhoods. In my ownneighborhood. . . . I know my neighbors even though we

are far apart; I know if we drive by if something is really

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strange or out of place. . . . We have several little commu-nities in this county and I would hope it would draw themcloser and help them to depend on each other which is anokay thing.”

In urban or suburban areas CERT programs may seem insig-nificant compared to the size of the population. It may also bedifficult for an entire CERT to assemble in a single location in thecase of a major disaster. Organizing CERTs with “block captains”similar to the Cold War civil defense units was one approach toaddressing locational challenges identified in this study mirroringan observation made by Simpson �2001�. Along a similar vein,three CERTs in northern Chicago suburbs were organizing groupsinto smaller “geographical teams” to share equipment and coor-dinate responses.

Program Constraints and LimitationsFunding was by far the most common answer to the question,“What are the limitations that you see in the CERT program?”CERT coordinators were most often concerned with the lack ofconsistency in grants through Citizen Corps, financial commit-ment from their municipality, or a general lack of funds and re-sources. CERT coordinators can apply for a Citizen Corps/CERTgrant funded by the FEMA through the state or seek other fundingsources. Urban CERT coordinators indicated more experiencewith receiving donations from local civic groups or their munici-pality, while rural coordinators discussed ways of being resource-ful to minimize reliance on grants and donations:

“So I work with a lot of people here at the health depart-ment so I can say, ‘Hey, anybody got some old sheets Ican use?’ I want to rip it up �for practice bandages�. It isjust that kind of resource. It is not necessarily the moneythat we have . . . grants do not seem to have a long life. Ido not expect that we would have this grant for too manyyears.”

While 17 of the urban and rural CERTs were supported bygrant money through the state Citizen Corps or Illinois Emer-gency Management, three coordinators either did not know howto access these grants or were supported completely by their mu-nicipality. Other constraints and limitations highlighted were thestruggles to keep participants engaged over time, negotiating roleswith official emergency responders and infrastructure, and diffi-culties tailoring the CERT training materials to local circum-stances or contexts. While important to coordinators, theselimitations were clearly secondary to problems related to fundingand resources.

Conclusions and Implications

Citizen Corps and the FEMA give CERTs a limited, prescribedrole description leaving interpretation open to local programs.CERT coordinators studied in Illinois perceived their primary roleas enhancing preparedness and response to emergencies and di-sasters in their communities. In addition, most coordinators feltthat CERTs should contribute to their communities beyond emer-gency response by being educators to the general populace orvolunteering at community events. Many coordinators exhibited awillingness to go beyond the prescribed training and becomefunctioning units within their communities. They offered addi-

tional training; formed plans for team response to disasters and

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emergencies; and volunteered as teams for nonemergency com-munity events.

Based on the interview data collected in this study, the CERTsin Illinois play four distinct roles: �1� emergency responders; �2�educators of the general public; �3� providing services to enhancecommunity well-being; and �4� strengthening communal ties andcreating a sense of local identity and independence. The CERTprogram, as it has been interpreted by Illinois programs, has theability to enhance the capacity of a community to respond to arange of issues, from creating a forum for diverse groups to cometogether for a common purpose to providing services that mayreduce the strain and cost on first responders. Building this capac-ity before a disaster occurs will improve a community’s prepara-tion for disaster, as well as increase resiliency following a disaster�Flint and Brennan 2006�.

Building community capacity is especially pertinent for ruralareas having limited resources and access to first responders.CERTs can be used to develop both the response capacity of thearea and to enhance the sense of community, with neighborswatching out for neighbors, where residences are relatively spreadout. In urban settings neighborhood designations or building com-munities within communities is relevant as well. In very populousareas, CERT members may not feel like they are able to make animpact on the entire municipality or township. By focusing theirefforts or response range to a smaller area, CERT members canattain a feeling of greater relevance and presence in their commu-nity. Given that funding is the dominant constraint in facilitatingan effective program, effective coordination and communicationwith broader emergency management institutions is essential.

Based on this study of CERTs in Illinois a number of sugges-tions might assist the development of the CERT program as itcontinues to expand both in size and scope throughout the UnitedStates:• Planning: before adopting the program, decide how the CERT

will be organized and used;• Retraining: offer retraining and extra classes for CERT gradu-

ates several times a year;• Funding: be resourceful and seek support from within and be-

yond the community;• Stay active: provide opportunities for CERT members to be-

come active in their communities outside of emergency re-sponse, to build ties within the community, and give the CERTexposure;

• Representation: try to draw in all segments of the community,to reflect the local population, so certain groups are not left outor ignored; and

• Network: form relationships with other CERTs in the area or inthe state to coordinate knowledge sharing experiences, col-laborate on emergency drills, or share resources.A more systematic study of CERTs in multiple regions under

different hazard and vulnerability conditions would be useful inilluminating the broad implications of this program in promotingpreparedness and enhancing local recovery from disasters andemergencies.

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