Ongoing READY Baltics

Resilience, Equity, Accessibility and DisabilitY inclusion through prevention and preparedness makes READY Baltics a new initiative READY to address gaps in current policies and practices!

News

Project Kick off in Brussels – 15-17 April 2026 – Read more about what we are planning!

Why inclusive preparedness matters

READY Baltics is a regional initiative strengthening disability-inclusive civil protection and disaster risk management (CP/DRM) in Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. The project recognises that inclusive preparedness is not a niche issue. It is a foundation for safer, more resilient societies for everyone.

Persons with disabilities are among the most affected during crises, facing higher mortality rates, inaccessible early warning systems, and exclusion from emergency planning. Despite strong international and European Union (EU) commitments, disability inclusion in preparedness and response remains uneven across Europe. READY BALTICS addresses this gap by turning policy commitments into practical systems, skills, and tools.

Our goal

READY Baltics shows how disability inclusion strengthens disaster preparedness for everyone, turning resilience into a shared public good.

What the project does

READY BALTICS works at three levels:

1. Individuals & communities: improving risk awareness and personal preparedness among persons with disabilities, including those most at risk.
2. Systems & institutions: equipping civil protection authorities with practical training to embed disability inclusion into policies, procedures, and urban resilience planning.
3. Organisations of Persons with Disabilities (OPDs): strengthening advocacy, technical expertise, and structured engagement with CP/DRM authorities.

The impact

By the end of the project, READY Baltics will:

• Improve individual preparedness for thousands of persons with disabilities
• Strengthen institutional preparedness and professional capacity
• Increase meaningful participation of OPDs in disaster planning
• Deliver tools and models that can be replicated across the EU

How it works

• Minimum 2000 most at risk individuals with a variety of disabilities are targeted with individual preparedness tools and training.
• Develops two replicable training modules: one for OPDs and one for CP/DRM stakeholders with the goal of integrating into Union Civil Protection Knowledge Network content.
• Pilots the UNDRR Disaster Resilience Scorecard for Cities in Estonia, Lativia and Lithuania and seeks entry points for practical application into urban resilience planning
• Delivers accessible preparedness information and targeted outreach at community level, including effective advocacy skills for better policy and practice.
• Builds cross-border learning through Nordic-Baltic and EU cooperation platforms

Who is involved

Organisations of Persons with Disabilities (OPDs):

• European Disability Forum (coordinator)
• The Estonian Chamber of People with Disabilities (EPIK)
• The Latvian Umbrella Body for Disability Organisations (SUSTENTO)
• Lithuanian Disability Organizations Forum (LNF) 

Rescue boards in the region

• Estonian Rescue Board
• Latvian Rescue Board
• Lithuanian Rescue Board

Civil Protection authorities and supportive cooperation bodies

• Lithuanian Red Cross Society
• The Samaritan Association of Latvia
• Council of the Baltic Sea States
• The Nordic Welfare Centre
• UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction
• Union Civil Protection Knowledge Network
• EU Civil Protection Mechanism (ECPM)
• EU European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO)

The initiative is funded by the European Commission ECHO Unit.

READY Baltics turns policy commitments into action, showing that inclusive preparedness makes societies safer and more resilient for everyone.