Skip to main content

Ready Campaign

Overview

Ready is a National public service campaign designed to educate and empower U.S. households, communities, and organizations to prepare for, respond to and mitigate emergencies and disasters. The goal of the campaign is to promote preparedness through public involvement. It emphasizes core readiness actions, commonly framed as being informed, making a plan, building a kit, and getting involved, and links to tools like the FEMA mobile app for preparedness strategies and emergency alerts. It provides tailored pathways for key audiences - especially Ready Kids (youth/family/educators) and Ready Business (continuity and disruption planning for organizations).

    Map
    Country
    United States
    Geolocation

    Ready Campaign

    Contributor

    ISIG

    Summary Description

    The Ready Campaign case documents how national authorities use a centralized, accessible website and downloadable materials to mobilize preparedness behaviors at scale. Ready.gov combines “evergreen” preparedness education (what to do before a crisis) with hazard-relevant guidance and toolkits that help different groups act: families through simplified steps and templates, children through age-appropriate learning materials (e.g., Prepare with Pedro), and businesses through continuity planning guidance and hazard-specific toolkits.

    Context & Background

    The Ready Campaign was launched in 2003 as a national public service effort to increase public preparedness through involvement and practical action. It sits within a U.S. disaster governance context where response is shared across federal, state, and local systems, and where household and organizational readiness significantly affects outcomes during widespread emergencies. The platform addresses a persistent challenge: risk awareness does not automatically translate into preparedness. By segmenting content for kids and for businesses, Ready acknowledges that preparedness needs differ by role, capability, and responsibility, and that effective engagement requires tailored guidance rather than one-size-fits-all messaging.

    Problem Addressed

    Focusing on a multi-hazard risk environment, the platform addresses several concrete preparedness problems that repeatedly undermine disaster outcomes in the United States:

    1. Preparedness action gap (knowing vs doing). Many people understand that disasters happen but still don’t translate that awareness into basic actions: having supplies, knowing what to do, or having a plan. Ready reduces this gap by turning preparedness into simple, repeatable steps with clear “next actions” rather than abstract advice.
    2. Information fragmentation and confusion in fast-moving events. In emergencies, the public often faces mixed messages, incomplete information, or uncertainty about which sources to trust and what to do first. The platform standardizes guidance and emphasizes being informed through reliable warning channels and official instructions so people can act quickly and safely.
    3. Lack of household communication and reunification planning. A common failure point is that family members don’t know how to contact each other, where to meet, or what to do if communications are disrupted. Ready.gov addresses this with structured planning prompts and templates that help households agree on roles, meeting points, contacts, and contingencies before a crisis.
    4. Role-specific preparedness needs are different (and “one-size-fits-all” doesn’t work). The platform explicitly separates pathways for different audiences so guidance is relevant and usable:
      • Ready Kids addresses the challenge that children depend on adult planning and need age-appropriate education that builds preparedness literacy without fear. It equips families and educators with activities and materials that turn preparedness into a learnable skill and a family conversation.
      • Ready Business addresses the reality that businesses face different risks and responsibilities: employee safety, crisis communications, IT disruption, continuity of operations, and recovery planning. It provides structured continuity and emergency planning guidance plus hazard-specific toolkits to help organizations move from “we should prepare” to a workable continuity plan.
    5. Continuity planning and crisis communications gaps in organizations. Many organizations, especially small and medium-sized ones lack a formal continuity plan, a crisis communications plan, or a tested emergency response structure. Ready Business directly targets these operational gaps by providing planning guidance, templates, and structured toolkits.
    6. Need for scalable, reusable preparedness materials. Local emergency managers, schools, and community organizations often need credible, ready-to-use materials. Ready.gov provides publications and downloadable resources that can be reused and distributed widely, improving consistency and reach across jurisdictions.
    Vulnerable Groups

    The platform is designed for the general public, but it includes targeted pathways for groups with distinct preparedness needs:

    • Children/teens and their support networks (families, schools, educators): through “Ready Kids,” which provides age-appropriate preparedness learning and activities that help households talk about emergencies and build readiness habits early.
    • Small businesses and organizations: through “Ready Business,” which supports continuity planning, crisis communications planning, and hazard-specific planning resources.
      In practical terms, these groups are “vulnerable” not only due to exposure, but due to responsibility and dependency: children rely on adult planning; organizations rely on continuity, staff safety procedures, and communications during disruption.
    Governance

    This case is governed through a centralized, national public preparedness model. Ready.gov is a federal-level platform that provides standardized preparedness guidance and communication materials intended for use across the United States. It is designed to complement, rather than replace, state and local emergency management structures: national guidance sets consistent preparedness messaging, while implementation of preparedness actions happens locally through households, schools, workplaces, and community organizations. The platform does not function as a community-led governance mechanism; instead, it supports shared responsibility by equipping different audiences (general public, children/families/educators, and businesses) with role-appropriate guidance.

    Emergency Preparedness

    The case primarily targets basic preparedness. It focuses on strengthening baseline readiness before incidents occur by encouraging people and organizations to be informed, make plans, build emergency supplies, and understand how to receive alerts and follow official instructions. For businesses, the platform extends basic preparedness into continuity-oriented planning (e.g., crisis communications and continuity planning guidance), but it remains a preparedness education and guidance resource rather than an operational response system.

    Infrastructure Readiness

    The case assumes a modern infrastructure context where digital communication is widely used, but disruption is possible. Preparedness guidance therefore promotes redundancy: ensuring people and organizations can receive alerts and instructions and maintain basic readiness even when services are disrupted.

    Purpose of Engagement

    The purpose of engagement is to move people and organizations from passive awareness to concrete preparedness actions. Ready.gov aims to increase risk awareness, improve access to reliable information and alerts, and reduce confusion during crises by giving clear “what to do” guidance. For specific audiences, it strengthens preparedness capability: helping families and educators build preparedness literacy with children (Ready Kids) and helping organizations improve readiness and continuity planning (Ready Business).

    Methods of Engagement

    Engagement is achieved through structured public guidance delivered via the Ready.gov website and downloadable resources. The platform uses simple action frameworks (be informed, plan, kit, get involved), step-by-step instructions, templates and publications (e.g., household communication planning), and audience-specific pathways. Ready Kids uses age-appropriate learning materials and activities to support families and educators; Ready Business uses continuity-planning guidance and hazard-specific toolkits to translate preparedness into organizational procedures. The approach is primarily digital and designed for wide reuse and sharing by households, schools, workplaces, and community partners.

    Degree of Influence & Decision-Making

    Users influence outcomes through preparedness actions at household/school/workplace level (plans, supplies, continuity, communications readiness). The case does not position the public as decision-makers in the broader DRRM governance model; it equips them to act quickly and appropriately within official guidance.

    Capacity-Building & Long-Term Empowerment

    Long-term capacity is built through repeatable routines (planning, supplies, staying informed) and through audience-specific education and planning pathways. “Ready Kids” builds early-life preparedness literacy; “Ready Business” builds organizational continuity competence, including planning and crisis communications readiness.

    Key Features & Innovations

    Ready operationalizes national preparedness through a single, centralized platform that turns disaster risk into simple, repeatable actions. Its key innovation is audience segmentation: the same core preparedness logic is tailored to distinct groups with different needs and responsibilities. “Ready Kids” provides age-appropriate learning resources and tools for families and educators to build preparedness literacy early. “Ready Business” translates preparedness into continuity and crisis communications planning with structured toolkits and guidance. The platform also supports scalability by offering downloadable publications, templates, and shareable materials that can be reused by partners, schools, and organizations.

    Language(s)

    Ready.gov content is primarily in:

    • English 
    • Spanish 

    It also offers preparedness information and materials in additional languages beyond English via the “Ready in Your Language” page, and some key documents (like the Emergency Supply Kit Checklist) are provided in multiple translated versions.

    Implementing Organisation(s)

    The platform is implemented as a federal-level public preparedness and risk communication initiative (Ready Campaign) delivered through the Ready.gov website and associated publications and toolkits, hosted by the US Department of Homeland Security. 

    Experience of the Implementing Organisation in DRRM

    The implementer has extensive experience in disaster risk management–related public preparedness and crisis communication. The Ready Campaign has been running as a long-term national program since 2003, with sustained institutional delivery through FEMA and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. It operates at national scale with recurring campaigns and long-standing communication partnerships (including the Ad Council), and it maintains a large, continuously updated body of public guidance and preparedness materials for households, children/educators, and businesses.

    Actors Involved

    Primary actor: national/federal preparedness leadership maintaining the platform and materials.
    Supporting actors: partner organisations and communication channels that disseminate campaign messaging and materials; schools and educators using Ready Kids resources; businesses and organisations applying Ready Business toolkits; households and community groups implementing preparedness actions locally.

    Implementation Steps

    How the case works in practice:

    1. Develop and maintain a clear national preparedness framework and guidance content.

        2. Publish and update preparedness pages, downloadable templates, and publications.

        3. Provide dedicated, audience-specific pathways (Ready Kids, Ready Business) with role-appropriate tools.

        4. Run periodic communication pushes and encourage reuse/sharing of materials by partners, educators, and organisations.

        5. Encourage local adoption: households create plans and kits; educators integrate resources; organisations develop and test continuity plans.

    Resources Required
    • Ongoing content development and updating (multi-hazard guidance, templates, toolkits).
    • Web hosting and platform maintenance.
    • Communication capacity (campaign messaging, downloadable materials, partner distribution).
    • Specialist inputs for business continuity and youth education materials.
    • Optional translation/accessibility work depending on available formats and reach goals.
    Timeframe & Phases

    Ongoing national program delivered through a continuously available website and resource library, reinforced through recurring preparedness messaging cycles and periodic releases/updates of publications and campaign materials.

    Lessons Learned from Implementation

    A key lesson embedded in the platform design is that preparedness scales when it is simple, repeatable, and tailored to user roles. Ready.gov shows the value of segmenting preparedness into audience-specific pathways: children learn best through age-appropriate materials and guided activities (Ready Kids), while organizations adopt preparedness more effectively when it is translated into continuity planning and practical toolkits (Ready Business). Another lesson is that standardized national guidance is most effective when it supports, rather than replaces, local action, encouraging users to rely on alerts, warnings, and instructions appropriate to their location.

    Challenges & Adaptive Strategies

    Available Ready materials focus on guidance and tools rather than reporting implementation challenges or uptake barriers. No standardized reporting on participation rates, completion of plans, or business continuity adoption is directly presented as part of the website resources referenced for this case. 

    However, the platform’s design suggests an implicit adaptive strategy: it reduces barriers to action by simplifying preparedness into clear steps and by tailoring resources to different audiences (e.g., Ready Kids and Ready Business), making the guidance more relevant and easier to adopt.

    Risk & Mitigation Plan

    Risk mitigation is addressed through general preparedness and multi-hazard readiness. The platform emphasizes early protective action by encouraging people to understand hazards, know how to receive alerts and warnings, and follow official instructions. It mitigates preparedness failure risk by providing practical templates, publications, and toolkits that guide users step-by-step, reducing confusion and improving readiness behaviors across a wide range of emergency scenarios.

    Sustainability Model

    This case is sustained through long-term institutional ownership and the relatively low-cost scalability of a digital public preparedness platform. Ready.gov functions as a continuously available national resource hub that can be updated over time, reused by partners, and reinforced through periodic preparedness campaigns. Sustainability depends primarily on ongoing institutional commitment to maintaining and updating content, keeping publications/toolkits current, and continuing outreach so preparedness behaviors remain active.

    Scalability & Adaptability

    The approach is highly scalable because it is centrally produced and distributed digitally: once guidance and tools are developed, they can reach very large audiences at low marginal cost. Its modular design improves scalability - core preparedness steps apply broadly, while specialized pathways (Ready Kids and Ready Business) increase relevance for key audiences, improving uptake and practical use.

    Adaptability is also high, but localization is essential outside the United States. The model can be replicated in other countries, but content must be adapted to local governance and risk contexts: emergency numbers, alerting systems, trusted official channels, evacuation/shelter practices, terminology, hazard priorities, and the roles of institutions at national vs local level. Business continuity guidance also requires alignment with local legal/regulatory and labor contexts, and youth materials must align with national education systems and cultural approaches to risk communication.

    Technology & Innovation

    The innovation is primarily behavioral and organizational rather than technical: a clear action framework, role-based pathways, and reusable toolkits/templates that reduce barriers to preparedness. The platform leverages common digital communication channels and shareable materials (including social media distribution), but it does not depend on specialized technology. Its segmented structure (Kids / Business) is a key innovation for broad adoption at scale.

    Financial & Logistical Sustainability - Direct Costs

    No consolidated information was available in the reviewed public materials on the direct costs of developing and launching Ready.gov as a national preparedness platform (e.g., website build, initial content production, campaign creative development). As a national program, these costs likely include professional content development, design, technical development, and production of downloadable publications/toolkits, but public figures are not provided as part of the platform documentation.

    Financial & Logistical Sustainability - Operational Costs

    No consolidated public information was available in the reviewed materials on the ongoing operational costs (e.g., staffing for content governance, technical maintenance, updates, publication refresh cycles, campaign communications, and partnership coordination). Based on the nature of the solution, operational costs are likely dominated by personnel time, platform maintenance, periodic content/toolkit updates, and recurring communication campaigns rather than expensive infrastructure.

    Lessons Learned

    Preparedness platforms scale best when they reduce complexity into clear, repeatable actions and when they tailor guidance to different users’ roles and responsibilities. Ready.gov demonstrates that segmentation increases adoption: children benefit from age-appropriate educational materials that normalize preparedness early, while businesses need continuity-oriented guidance and toolkits that translate preparedness into operational plans. 

    The case also shows that adaptability depends on governance localization. Alerts, trusted sources, institutional roles, and emergency procedures must be country-specific to remain credible and usable. Finally, long-term sustainability depends on institutional continuity and routine reinforcement: even well-designed resources require periodic updates and repeated outreach to keep preparedness behaviors active over time.