The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) recently opened an application period for its Emergency Manager Exchange (EMX) program, giving state, local, Tribal and territorial governments to send emergency managers to FEMA offices.
Participants will work for six months stints, networking, exploring different emergency management perspectives and influencing procedures at a federal level, while FEMA staff will be exchanged to do the same at a more local or regional level. While nearly 40 state emergency management programs already host FEMA staff, EMX turns that on its head by welcoming other programs’ workers into the federal space.
“Disaster management works best when all levels of government work together and use their experiences to make informed decisions throughout disaster response and recovery,” FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell said. “We created FEMA’s Emergency Manager Exchange program to help more state and local emergency managers gain federal experience and for FEMA employees to learn from their counterparts. I am excited to announce this year’s application opportunity, and I invite all emergency managers to apply for this no cost opportunity to bring even more important perspectives to our development of programs and policies.”
A nomination period opened on Jan. 22, 2024 and will run through Feb. 9, 2024. After that, exchange placements should begin in March and last until September. Applicants must be nominated by their home offices and supply their resumes to FEMA.