Next Public Meeting – Anybody out there? Grassroots Communication Solutions Needed to Prepare for the Next Emergency

RBDA Virtual Public Meeting 

Wednesday, March 31, 7:30 p.m. 

Zoom Video Conference Meeting 

The next RBDA public meeting will facilitate a discussion about what you and your neighbors can do to prepare for the next emergency given the distressing lack of cell phone and internet coverage when the power goes out in Bonny Doon. As the RBDA lobbies the carriers and our government officials for better telecommunications infrastructure, it is also working to support the organization and implementation of grassroots radio-based communications systems.

Come to the meeting and learn how to organize your neighborhood and to select the right radio tools so that you can communicate with your neighbors, other Bonny Doon neighborhoods and emergency services outside Bonny Doon during a power outage.

You’ll hear from Dooners from different areas that have already used these techniques to communicate with neighbors when trouble arises and others who are preparing to do so. Share the systems you and your neighbors are creating, and bring your ideas to help us build a whole from all the parts.

Dawn Mackey will present a plan to distribute radios to neighbors and unite the groups who have already organized grassroots communications systems. Mackey is a 48 year resident of Bonny Doon, and over the years has been an active participant and leader in a number of organizations including the Bonny Doon Volunteer Fire Team, the Bonny Doon Preschool, 4H, and currently serves on the Bonny Doon Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) and as the volunteer coordinator for the Bonny Doon Ecological Reserve. She is also a member of the Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) where she participates in regular radio nets and other activities. 

Please join us for this discussion. It’s important that all of Bonny Doon gets on the same page to build the most effective emergency communication network so that no one is left isolated and in the dark during a crisis. 

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