Serving the Underserved: What is Being Done?

Poverty, unemployment, racial disparities, language differences, and a host of other factors can cause some communities to be more vulnerable to harm from natural hazards than others. To make matters worse, many of these “socially vulnerable” communities have been historically underserved by weather products and services. To address these inequalities, the NWS is actively engaged in identifying the communities that require additional support and strategically allocating resources to enhance the services they receive. This presentation will describe successful initiatives undertaken by NWS offices across the country to enhance services for socially vulnerable and historically underserved communities. It is likely that some of the measures will be equally effective in other communities and in other parts of the country. We will also examine some of the ways indicators of social vulnerability are being used to improve risk communication and to inform education and outreach priorities.