Weathering extremes: A toolkit for information resilience amid disaster

This toolkit positions information resilience as a key element of disaster preparedness, response, and recovery. It provides a model that combines upstream efforts to build readiness and trust architecture, with frameworks to triage and counter information threats when a crisis strikes. It examines how extreme weather events are fueling mis- and disinformation and positions information resilience as a key element of disaster preparedness, response and recovery. Designed primarily for emergency managers, resilience officers and public information officers, the toolkit outlines the evolving threat landscape and provides practical frameworks for understanding, assessing and responding to information threats. In tandem, it details how a more expansive set of actors is needed to realize and embed outcomes, working across government at the state, local, and tribal levels. It draws on expert interviews, scenario exercises and lessons from emergency management and climate resilience practitioners across the United States.

The study finds that information threats linked to extreme weather commonly fall into three categories: environmental, geopolitical, and hate, extremism and conspiracy narratives. It argues that information resilience should begin with assessing readiness, building networks of trusted partners and strengthening community trust. The authors recommend investing in trust architecture, conducting readiness and red-team exercises, developing partnerships across sectors, and adopting proactive measures such as prebunking, digital countermeasures and direct community engagement to reduce the impacts of information manipulation before, during and after disasters.