About

Andrea Davis is a recognized expert in the field of emergency management who has dedicated her career to bridging the silos between public and private sectors to create a united approach when it comes to disaster risk reduction. Ms. Davis has held leadership roles with NGOs (The American Red Cross, Save the Children US), the US Federal Government (FEMA, The Federal Reserve) and for Fortune 500 Companies (Walmart, Disney). With each role, Ms. Davis used her influence to lead global initiatives focused on the importance of making risk informed determinations and engaging all members of the community in the decision-making process. Currently, Ms. Davis is the President and CEO of a Women Owned Small Business (WOSB), The Resiliency Initiative, which she founded out of a passion to serve the whole community before, during, and after an emergency.

Lucas Eckroad currently serves as the Director of Employee Resilience for a Fortune 100 Company, responsible for the growth and implementation of both insider risk and employee care & support programs. Prior to this role, he spent 15 years in crisis/emergency management working across all segments; private, public and nonprofit. During that time he led initiatives across all phases of the emergency management life cycle to include; the development and implementation of community driven earthquake preparedness initiatives, serving as the emergency management liaison the school district of a major metropolitan area, responding to federal and state declared disasters and developing plans and exercises for senior level executives.

Jackie Koci Tamayo is a Senior Emergency Planning Coordinator with the Santa Clara County Office of Emergency Management. She has served as the Emergency Services Coordinator for the Superior Court of California, County of Alameda leading the development of judicial emergency management and security. Passionate about building and strengthening relationships that lead to resilience, as an instructor of Emergency Management, Jackie is a proponent in developing aspiring professionals and vested teammates. Prior to her Bay Area arrival, Jackie worked for 22 years with the City of Los Angeles Department of Recreation and Parks (RAP) and the Emergency Management Department (EMD). Jackie was instrumental in creating RAP’s Citywide Training Task Force and she pioneered the Emergency Management Division which led the City’s Mass Care needs. While working for LA City EMD, Jackie liaised for LAPD and LAFD Operations West Bureau, implemented training and exercises for senior staff and EOC responders, enhanced community preparedness and engagement, and was the Director of the Business Operations Center. She earned her bachelor’s degree in History and Politics from Woodbury University and a Master’s in Leadership and Management University of La Verne as well as various other certifications in the field of Public Safety and Emergency Management.

David Ebarle joined the Oakland Fire Department as their Communications (Fire Dispatch) Manager in February 2022. Prior to joining the Oakland Fire Department, he spent fifteen (15) years with the San Francisco Department of Emergency Management in roles ranging from EMS Agency Specialist, Support Services Manager, and Chief of Staff. Preceding SFDEM, he was a supervisor for the San Jose Police Department Communications Center. He got his start in public safety as a 9-1-1 Dispatcher for the City of San Mateo.

Eileen Connors began her emergency management career with The Walt Disney Company, supporting business segments around the world as each was impacted by natural or man-made events. Ms. Connors left the Fortune 500 company for a start-up, where she built the business continuity program from the ground up. Ms. Connors currently serves as the emergency services manager for the City of Simi Valley, California, a bedroom community of over 120,000 bordering Los Angeles. Ms. Connors believes that if we teach people how to take care of themselves during an emergency, they will. She looks for opportunities to share this philosophy with the whole community.

Jeff Dell’s background spans over 30 years of work in corporate security, crisis management, business continuity, disaster recovery, risk mitigation, executive protection, and enterprise resilience with organizations including NortonLifeLock, Bank of America, Interstate Hotels & Resorts. His technical background working at NASA and Bank of America includes supporting technology infrastructure, data centers, system and tool integration, and regulatory compliance.

Niall Kavanagh is a communications officer at the Global Brain Health Institute (GBHI) at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). He is responsible for promoting messaging, media and news for GBHI and the Atlantic Fellows for Equity in Brain Health program. Niall is motivated to use his interests and skills in writing, science and communications to elevate diverse perspectives to broader and more engaged audiences. Prior to joining GBHI, Niall led communications for HIV, Infections Diseases & Global Medicine at UCSF. He earned a bachelor’s degree in finance from Santa Clara University and a master’s degree in clinical psychology from Palo Alto University.

Stasha Wyskiel has been in emergency management since the early 90s. She has worked for FEMA, the San Francisco Office of Emergency Services, and was the Director of Emergency Planning for the San Francisco Unified School District responding to 100s of National disasters and other emergencies. On the private side, she worked for Charles Schwab and Gap Inc. providing global crisis management planning and response. She started at Salesforce in 2013, where she is now the Senior Director of Resilience overseeing crisis management, business continuity planning, the Global Operations Centers, and overall risk for Global Safety and Security. She was a command staff for the Bay Area Disaster Medical Assistance Team (DMAT CA6) for 15 years responding to events like Katrina and was the Chair of the Bay Area American Red Cross Leadership Council and a member of the Bay Area American Red Cross Board. In her spare time, she likes to throw preparedness parties for her friends and her friends’ friends, including the four-legged kind.

Tereza Ortega-Franco (Curry) is the founder of 1Relief Disaster Risk Management focusing on business continuity, crisis management and community engagement. A former ACP Chapter president of Santa Barbara county, Tereza is an organizer, producer, speaker and the author of Managing Disaster in Unpredictable Times. A multi-lingual international Disaster Management consultant, she has extensive experience in mediation, exporting, insurance claims, and construction. She navigates from her desk to the front lines of local disasters, while making contribution at global conferences on resilience. Ortega-Franco’s TV show, SafeTea, is an ongoing production as she keeps the conversation of planning as part of humankind everyday life.