The Association of State Floodplain Managers (ASFPM) Foundation (Foundation) was established in 1996 as the charitable arm of ASFPM. Importantly, the Foundation acts as a forward-looking catalyst for ASFPM, its Chapters, and members to advance projects, education, and policy initiatives that promote actions leading to reduced flood risk and resilient communities.

The Foundation is a premiere advocate for the floodplain management profession and serves as a voice for floodplain management practitioners, suppliers, and service providers nationwide, and in some cases globally.  The Foundation has played a key role in the development of the Certified Floodplain Manager (CFM) certification program, which is foundational to establishing and maintaining the credibility of floodplain managers across the country. The Foundation continues to support the profession in many ways that bolster the CFM program. The following describes but a few of these important initiatives:

• In February 2020, the ASFPM Foundation released a report titled “Urban Flooding: Moving Towards Resilience,” to document important discussions by world class experts who attended the Foundation’s 6^th assembly of the Gilbert F. White National Policy Forum. The report showcases the in-depth engagement on urban flooding issues by more than 100 experts from local, state, and federal agencies; professional associations; environmental groups; and private organizations.  The report can be downloaded from the ASFPM Foundation website.
• The ASFPM Foundation announced the award of its 2020-2022 Future Leaders Scholarship to Elizabeth Lacey at the ASFPM Virtual Conference in June 2020. Elizabeth is entering her third year in the Civil Engineering Honors Program at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colorado.  She is the second student of what we hope are many more to come to receive this $20,000 per year scholarship with the goal of developing future leaders in the floodplain management field. Elizabeth’s acceptance message can be found on the ASFPM Foundation Website.
• The ASFPM Foundation provided funding for, and partnered with ASFPM Flood Science Center to develop” Flood Mapping for the Nation Report” and “Understanding and Managing Flood Risk: A Guide for Elected Officials.” Both of these documents provide valuable information to floodplain management practitioners and can be found on the ASFPM Flood Science Center website.
• The ASFPM Foundation again partnered with FEMA Region VIII and Earth Force to sponsor the 2020 Rocky Mountain Environmental Hazards Challenge, now referred to as the Rise Challenge. This is an annual competition that combines project-based learning with the latest research in science, technology, engineering, and mathematic (STEM) education.

Donations are the primary source of funding for the ASFPM Foundation.  We cannot emphasize enough the importance of your contributions in helping us to sustain our current initiatives and develop new ones. The goal of reducing suffering and losses and improving a community’s ability to become safer and stronger in the aftermath of increasingly catastrophic flooding events is at the forefront of everything we do. Importantly, we also promote sustainable management of the nation’s floodplains and watersheds.  For more information regarding the ASFPM Foundation and how you can donate, please contact George Riedel, Foundation Donor Coordinator, at George@aspfmfoundation.org.