The University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public and International Affairs has launched a new podcast on the topic of leadership during crisis.

At the intersection of disaster management and leadership studies, the Leadership During Crisis Podcast explores stories from leaders who have led through a dynamic crisis. It considers the behaviors that are necessary to guide a team under stress, ambiguity, or even danger to achieve the best possible outcomes. Between December 2017 and April 2018, the podcast series will feature leaders across local, national, and global events, and conclude with lessons drawn from across episodes.

Episode 1 focuses on the fundamental role that individuals and communities play in their own response to crisis and disaster. It tells the stories of three leaders who each took action outside their normal roles to help their community understand and respond to the recent wildfires in northern California. How did these leaders make sense of what was happening and what was needed? Why and how did they decide to act? Before turning to these stories, the episode begins at the State of California’s Emergency Operations Center, where we learn more about the nature of these dangerous fires from the head of California’s Office of Emergency Services and FEMA’s Region 9 Administrator.

The series’ remaining episodes will feature leaders engaged in Pittsburgh’s water infrastructure crisis, the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the 2015 Charleston Church shooting, and this past hurricane season. Tune in each month to hear hard-won lessons about what it takes to effectively lead in crisis.