Risk Evaluation and Planning Program

About the Project

The Risk Evaluation and Planning Program (REPP) was piloted by Heritage Preservation with support from an Institute of Museum and Library Services National Leadership Grant. The purpose of the project, conducted in 2008-2009, was to demonstrate whether a risk evaluation by a team of preservation and emergency professionals, supplemented by practical recommendations and resources, can lead to preparedness at cultural institutions. Through this initiative, Heritage Preservation sought to identify the best incentives to help institutions with valuable collections but limited resources prepare for emergencies. The project also served to further develop guidelines for working with local first responders and emergency managers.

With guidance from a six-member National Advisory Committee, which included preservation and emergency planning professionals, Heritage Preservation developed guidelines and materials to standardize the risk evaluation process. Heritage Preservation solicited applications from museums in three states (Mississippi, Ohio, and Texas) and fifteen museums were selected to participate in the pilot project. Staff then worked with the museums to recruit preservation and emergency management professionals to serve as assessors. See the list of participating museums and assessors here.

Institutions eligible to participate in the program included aquariums, arboretums, art museums, botanical gardens, children/youth museums, general museums, historic houses and sites, history museums, nature centers, planetariums, science/technology centers, specialized museums, and zoos. Institutions were required to have at least one professional staff member or the full-time equivalent and remain open to the public at least 90 days a year.

The Risk Evaluation and Planning Program supported a two-day site visit by the team of assessors – an Emergency Awareness Assessor from the local community and a Preservation Assessor from the project’s pool of professionals. The assessors identified hazards to the museum’s collections and facilities, worked with staff to develop priorities for risk mitigation, and offered resources to help develop or improve an emergency plan. Following the site visits, each Preservation Assessor compiled a report of the findings from the risk evaluation and guided museum staff in the development of the emergency plan.

Staff from each participating museum facilitated the assessors’ site visit, developed or updated an emergency plan, implemented mitigation measures that the assessors suggested, and forged new relationships with local emergency management and first response professionals.

Heritage Preservation coordinated the exchange of information between assessors and museums, provided assessors with instructions and tools for conducting the risk evaluation to assessors, and gave museums resources for planning and follow-through.

The REPP pilot was formally evaluated in the fall of 2009 by the participating museums and assessors. The results of the evaluation and lessons learned from the project are outlined here. Resources developed to implement the project are available in the Tools and Tips section.

Risk Evaluation and Planning Program National Advisory Committee

Nick Artim, Fire Protection Consultant, Fire Safety Network, Middlebury, VT
Arthur Dutil, Consultant, Disaster Planning for Museums and Historic Buildings, Stockbridge, MA
Barbara Moore, Conservator in Private Practice, Pittsford, NY
Lisa Rebori, Vice President, Collections, Houston Museum of Natural Science, Houston, TX
Bob Troxel, Chief, Athens Fire Department, Athens, OH
Julia Marks Young, Director, Archives & Records Services, Mississippi Department of Archives and History, Jackson, MS

The Risk Evaluation and Planning Program was developed by Heritage Preservation and funded with a National Leadership Grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.