Level Up Audio Project

Season 3 Now Streaming!

GCC and FEMA Region 9 are pleased to bring you season 3 of the Level Up Audio Project! All episodes are available on the GCC website, and on most major streaming platforms including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and iHeartRadio.

Listen to Season 1 of Level Up

Listen to Season 2 of Level Up

Listen to Season 3 of Level Up

About the Level Up Audio Project

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Region 9 produced the Level Up Audio Project to share stories, case studies, and best practices to inspire hazard mitigation action and strengthen our community of hazard mitigation and climate adaptation professionals. As a resource to state and local governments on climate adaptation and resilience, the Georgetown Climate Center (GCC) partners with FEMA Region 9 to make the audio series available. 

The Level Up Audio Project features brief conversations with individuals who are making hazard mitigation planning and action a priority in their communities.

Released on April 24, 2023, Season 3 of Level Up highlights conversations with resilience and hazard mitigation on:

• Centering climate action planning on equity in Oakland, California;
• Hazard mitigation collaboration lead by the Morongo Band of Mission Indians;
• Mitigating drought and seismic vulnerability;
• Proactive policy to increase coastal resilience; and more.

Released on June 1, 2021, Season 2 of Level Up features interviews with resilience professionals on the following topics:

• Mitigating extreme heat by engaging communities in a shade-boosting bicycle and pedestrian streetscape project (case study: Tempe, Arizona);
• Reducing flooding and restoring endangered fish habitats in a multi-benefit project across levels of government (case study: Eureka, California);
• Communicating tsunami risk through local knowledge and storytelling (case study: Hilo and Honolulu, Hawaii);
• Understanding how people perceive and make decisions around flood risk (as discussed by a behavioral scientist).

Released in May 2020, Season 1 includes five episodes, some of which highlight:

• An immigrants’ rights organization in California who made sure all members of the community were able to rebuild following the Thomas Fire;
• The City of Santa Cruz integrating climate adaptation and hazard mitigation planning processes to ensure more coordinated implementation;
• The City of Tehama stacks various funding sources to elevate homes and protect the community from floods; and more.

All Level Up episodes are available below, and can also be streamed via podcast distributors like Blubrry, Apple Podcasts, and Spotify. If you have topics to suggest for future episodes or would like to get involved, please contact fema-r9-mitigation-planning@fema.dhs.gov or GCC Communications Associate Caren Fitzgerald (Caren.Fitzgerald@georgetown.edu).