About us
It’s all about people
And we’re surrounded by the best.
Management
Principal Designer, Director & Secretary
Garett Dworman, PhD
About Garett
Garett’s career has taken him from cognitive science and AI programming, through decision theory and information technology, to user experience research and design, and now to community crisis. He is driven by a love of finding solutions to problems that people face in their lives.
Board Chair & President
Lindsay Yarbrough Burr
About Lindsay
Lindsay is the CEO of Yarbrough Group. She holds a Masters degree in conflict analysis and resolution, and has extensive experience working in multiple sectors globally. We are excited to benefit from her no-nonsense discipline, unrelenting pursuit of clarity, and joyous sense of fun.
Founder, Executive Director & Treasurer
Susanne Jul, PhD
About Susanne
Susanne‘s expertise spans research and practice ranging from disaster management to software engineering to theatre to user experience design. She is driven by twin loves of drawing clarity from confusion, and empowering people to help themselves.
Advisors
Experience Design
Aaron Vanek
About Aaron
Aaron is a co-founder of Spectacular Disaster Factory, an award-winning immersive and interactive event design company. He has taught analog game design for over seven years to middle school students at private, charter and homeschool communities and created educational live action role playing events for clients across the country. We are inspired by his passion for the learning power of games.
Transcending Ordinary
Claus Raasted
About Claus
Claus is Director of the College of Extraordinary Experiences, an inspirational speaker, master of the impossible and LARPing pioneer. We are awed to benefit from his keen ability to reveal the fantastic in the mundane, his understanding of what excites people, and his fervent generosity.
Behavioral Economics & Games
Gary Milante, PhD
About Gary
Gary is a peace researcher who works with multilateral instiutions and international non-governmental organizations to promote peacebuilding in developing countries. His expertise spreads across economics, peace research, adaptive leadership and game design. We are delighted to benefit from his playfulness and ability to translate complex social economics into fun.
Business & Organizational Development
Leland Franklin
About Leland
Leland is the founder and principal of the executive coaching and leadership development firm, Kenshō Leadership, and is pursuing an MBA at UC Berkeley. We are grateful to benefit from his business experience, leadership acumen, keen insightfulness, deep empathy, and warm sense of humor.
Disaster Management
Luke Beckman
About Luke
Luke is Division Disaster State Relations Director for the Pacific Division of the American Red Cross. He has experience from numerous disasters, and in all phases of disaster management. We are thankful to benefit from his practical forward thinking, skills in bringing people together, and radiant friendliness.
Social & Behavioral Research
Zeno Franco, PhD
About Zeno
Zeno is a professor at the Medical College of Wisconsin, with expertise in research related to clinical psychology, community engagement, crisis response, and heroic action. We are elated to benefit from his clear thinking, dedication to reliable research, compassion, and humble wit.
Get involved
Volunteer
Grant Writer
Help us to find and apply for grants, so we can turn a generous world into a resilient one.
Details
START
As soon as possible
DURATION
Occasional or ongoing
DESCRIPTION
We need to secure funding for the development and testing of our new wildfire training experience. We are aiming for grants in the $5K-$100K range, focusing on corporate and community-based funders with interests in community resilience and/or wildfire preparedness.
Volunteer
Fundraising Strategist
Help us develop and implement our first strategic fundraising plan so we can grow and create a resilient world.
Details
START
As soon as possible
DURATION
3-6 months
DESCRIPTION
We need someone with fundraising and strategic planning experience to get us started and put us on a solid footing. For our Wildfire Project and other efforts we are looking for funding from a wide variety of sources, including foundation grants, corporate sponsorships, and individual donations.
Organization
We are a California nonprofit corporation, qualified as exempt from federal income tax under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code (“IRC”), classified as a public charity under IRC Section 170(b)(1)(A)(vi).
EIN: 99-1158114
Newsletters
From our blog
501(c)3 application, Part IV, Line 1: Mission & Activities
We recently submitted our application to the IRS for tax-exempt status 🤩. As part of that process, …
11 Steps to a Nonprofit: The Legal Process
“Oh, it’s really easy to start a nonprofit. I can show you how.” I don’t know how often someone has said this …
Our 2023 Annual Report is out!
We are excited to release our 2023 Annual Report, showcasing a year of innovation and growth. The report highlights …
From our blog
501(c)3 application, Part IV, Line 1: Mission & Activities
We recently submitted our application to the IRS for tax-exempt status 🤩. As part of that process, …
11 Steps to a Nonprofit: The Legal Process
“Oh, it’s really easy to start a nonprofit. I can show you how.” I don’t know how often someone has said this …
Our 2023 Annual Report is out!
We are excited to release our 2023 Annual Report, showcasing a year of innovation and growth. The report highlights …
Our mission
We use the transformative power of play to
inspire, educate, and empower
individuals and communities to be resilient and ready to
act, improvise, and overcome together
in the face of crisis.Because disasters happen. Suddenly. Anywhere.
And fun is more motivating than fear.