Equal Justice Works Disaster Resilience Program is named the National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster’s Innovative Program of the Year

The National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD) awards recognize organizational and individual excellence in fostering more effective delivery of services to communities affected by disaster. Out of six National VOAD awards, the Innovative Program of the Year highlights one program that has exhibited extraordinary strides in their support of disaster relief efforts. National VOAD chose to honor the Disaster Resilience Program based on the exceptional innovation and ingenuity through the development, implementation, and expansion of this Equal Justice Works program.

“We are thrilled that the Disaster Resilience Program has received this recognition from the National VOAD for providing long‐term solutions to legal needs through Fellowships that continuously aid communities affected by disasters,” said Linda Anderson Stanley, associate director of the Disaster Resilience Program at Equal Justice Works.

“Disaster law is a highly complicated and nuanced field. Lawyers responding to disasters must have extensive background knowledge of the communities and environments they serve. The fast-paced environment of disaster response often challenges disaster lawyers to think outside the box. These factors highlight the importance of collaboration with community partners, disaster response organizations, and other civil legal aid actors when working in disaster response and preparedness.  Seeing the impact of each Fellow in the Disaster Resilience Program is inspiring. We hope to continue to grow the program in a sustainable and helpful way.”

The award was presented to Equal Justice Works in conjunction with the National VOAD annual conference. This year’s program centered around the “Gateway to Collaboration,” which emphasized the importance of collaboration in all areas of disaster response and recovery.

The Equal Justice Works Disaster Resilience Program is committed to ensuring that all disaster survivors have an equitable recovery and are resilient for the future. For more information about the program, please visit here.

The Disaster Resilience Program is currently funded thanks to the American Red Cross, Carnegie Corporation of New York, the Center for Disaster Philanthropy and the California Wildfires Recovery, W.K. Kellogg Foundation, and the Danaher Foundation.