The University of New Orleans Center For Hazards Assessment, Response and Technology (UNO-CHART) has released a unique risk literacy manual that combines disaster education and literacy-building skills.
“Preparing for Storms in Louisiana” teaches disaster preparedness and reading skills together. The guide is available in print and via the Internet for use by various agencies and programs across the state. The manual is written in Plain Language at the sixth grade level so that valuable safety information can reach the largest audience possible.
The manual is part of UNO-CHART’s risk literacy project, which is dedicated to enhancing adult and children’s literacy by teaching risk assessment and reduction for individuals and families as subject matter in literacy programs and vice versa, teaching literacy through risk education.
"This manual is important because low-level readers can use it and learn to help prepare their families in the event of tropical storms and hurricanes,” said Pamela Jenkins, UNO professor of sociology and project manager. “It is not an intimidating or daunting guide. We hope to build capacity for preparedness as part of our community’s everyday life.”
This is a project of UNO-CHART, the Literacy Alliance of Greater New Orleans and the Lindy Boggs National Center for Community Literacy. It is funded by FEMA through the Louisiana Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness (GOHSEP), Hazard Mitigation Community Education and Outreach grant.
To review the manual, visit http://chart.uno.edu/docs/RiskLiteracyManual.pdf.