Building Linkages in Emergency Management

Building Linkages in Emergency Management is a conference that brings together emergency management professionals, first responders, and senior municipal staff to share best practices and lessons learned from managing real-world disaster responses. The event provides an excellent opportunity to network with peers and industry partners while supporting the ongoing development and strengthening of organizational emergency management programs and procedures.

June 2 - 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

June 3 - 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

We are currently working on confirming additional speakers for the agenda. Updates will be made here as soon as they are confirmed.

Single / Double Occupancy Group Rate: $159 per room per night

Staybridge Suites Occupancy Group Rate: $189 per room per night

***Room rates are subject to applicable fees and taxes. Parking, no charge.***

Call 1-877-688-2324 ext. 2 to make a reservation and quote Building Linkages in Emergency Management by Friday May 1, 2026 for the group rate.

Building Linkages Holiday Inn

Building Linkages Staybridge Suites

Reservations using the link must be made by Friday May 1, 2026. Any reservations made after the cutoff date will be subject to availability and the prevailing rate.

If guests wish to book room types other than those listed under the group block, or wish to arrive early, or extend their stay, call the hotel directly 1-877-688-2324 ext. 2 to make the reservation.

Info: This presentation will explore the evolving nature of climate change and the growing frequency and severity of extreme weather events. It will examine the rising economic costs of these events, including impacts on the housing market, as well as the often-overlooked effects on mental health and community well-being.
Building on this context, the presentation will shift to practical, actionable solutions. Participants will learn how individuals can be empowered to reduce their exposure to risk at the household level, with a focus on key hazards such as flooding, wildfire, and extreme heat. The session will highlight simple, effective measures that homeowners and renters can take to strengthen resilience and better protect their homes and families.

Info: Drawing on 25 years of ethical hacking, this session explores how modern attackers think, move, and exploit the blind spots many organizations don’t realize they have. The first half examines today’s threat landscape—how vulnerabilities are identified, how quickly attackers pivot once inside, and why even well-funded organizations are often compromised by simple oversights. The second half shifts to operational impacts, highlighting how cyber incidents affect emergency response. These attacks rarely stay digital—they can disrupt dispatch systems, corrupt critical data, and impact communications at critical moments. Through real-world examples, this session demonstrates how cyber events can escalate into physical crises, and how municipalities, first responders, and public sector agencies can strengthen resilience, continuity, and recovery to keep essential services running.

Info: This session will highlight the importance of an effective IMS structure, together with ensuring a collective understanding of community and organizational responses. Through the use of two major emergencies that impacted Niagara Health, this session will outline challenges and key learnings that will propel improvements in our emergency preparedness and response.

Info: When faced with a fast-moving and potentially catastrophic incident, what factors will enhance your ability to respond rapidly and effectively? Every organization confronts this challenge as current threats increase in intensity and frequency. Ransomware, malware, denial-of-service attacks, and cyber intrusions have underscored the importance of an organization’s effectiveness during the initial moments and hours of a crisis.
The term “Golden Hour” was first described by R. Adams Cowley, MD, when he recognized that the sooner trauma patients reached definitive care (within 60 minutes of injury) the better their chances of survival. What your organization does in those first few minutes and hours can make all the difference. To achieve this, you need a solid assessment and communication process, along with a crisis management team that understands its roles and responsibilities.
A fast-paced look at how to ensure the first hour of a crisis is truly golden for your organization.

Info: This session introduces St. John Ambulance (SJA) as a scalable, community-based emergency health resource that can be integrated into municipal emergency management frameworks to enhance surge capacity, support responder wellbeing, and strengthen overall system resilience.
Participants will explore how non-traditional response partners, like NGO’s, can be effectively leveraged to fill critical gaps in service delivery—particularly in prolonged incidents, large-scale events, and disaster scenarios. The presentation will highlight the strategic value of structured volunteer integration, demonstrating how SJA can support operational readiness, reduce system strain, and contribute to a more sustainable emergency response model.
Attendees will leave with a clearer understanding of how partnerships with organizations like SJA can enhance existing capabilities while aligning with municipal priorities around risk reduction, cost efficiency, and community resilience.

Info: Using real world examples drawn from recent events and emergencies, the session will examine common gaps faced by municipalities and response organizations when it comes to business continuity and operational resilience. Attention will be paid to the role of emergency management as a connector—bridging response, recovery, continuity, and resilience.

Info: As climate-driven disasters grow in frequency, scale, and cost, emergency management organizations face increasing pressure to improve preparedness, response, and recovery with limited resources. This presentation explores how AI enabled digital twins are being used globally to strengthen emergency management capabilities—moving from situational awareness to predictive insight and, increasingly, decision support.

Drawing on international case studies and Canadian examples, the session highlights practical applications of digital twins across preparedness, response, and recovery, including wildfire prediction, flood forecasting, damage assessment, and real-time coordination. It also examines the shift from generative AI to more advanced, agentic systems and outlines pragmatic next steps for organizations seeking to adopt digital twins in a scalable, responsible way.

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Host or Publisher Niagara West Emergency Management