BAARN CLASSES & RESOURCES

When a crisis hits, what do you need to be able to do? Act quickly. Evacuate safely. Keep yourself and your people safe. Protect your artwork. Get connected to trusted expertise. Keep your practice and operations going. Manage your emotional and mental health. Get help. Help others.

You don’t need to figure this out alone.

BAARN, the Bay Area Arts Readiness Network, provides free resources, training, and guidance to help artists and artist-run organizations become more prepared and resilient.

Designed for the real risks artists face, BAARN addresses challenges such as natural disasters, data loss, event cancellations, water leaks, building damage, and threats to artwork, instruments, and digital assets. Whether you work independently or with a team, in a venue or from home, preparedness helps protect what you have worked so hard to create.

BAARN is supported by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation.

Why now?

Because the best time to prepare is before a crisis happens. In an increasingly uncertain world, a few simple steps now can make a meaningful difference when disruption or emergency strikes.

How BAARN helps

BAARN offers free classes, on-demand resources, and hands-on training. The Basics track covers readiness, protection strategies, insurance, business continuity, and crisis communications. The Enhanced track offers specialized training in areas such as festival safety, tour safety and security, and active shooter or hostile activity preparedness.

Intro to Emergency Preparedness - Tuesday, July 14 - 1:00-2:15PM Pacific - online. Basics Track. Localized emergencies, regional disasters, and catastrophic events can have a devastating impact; even a brief loss of business can threaten sustainability. Learn how to prepare for and minimize the risk of physical threats – whether natural, human-caused, or accidents – and how to manage them if they occur. Register here>>

Guided Tour of an Emergency - Tuesday, July 28 - 1:00-2:15PM Pacific - online. Basics Track. Every crisis has a lifespan, whether a minor accident or a major disaster. Through this guided tour, you’ll learn how to navigate the growing landscape of information, resources and help available to artists and arts organizations. Along the way we’ll highlight how you can become more resilient and have greater agency at the different stages of readiness, response, and recovery. Along the way, your guides will share insider tips on what’s most practical, and help you chart a path through the sometimes confusing emergency management “word soup.” By the end of the tour, you’ll know where to go for help, how to access it quickly, and how to help others find their way too. Register here>>

Risk Assessment - Tuesday, August 4, 2:00-4:00PM Pacific - LIVE ONSITE CLASS. Stay tuned for venue details. Basics Track. Join BAARN faculty for a hands-on, real-time risk assessment. You’ll learn how to identify potential risks in your own physical environment, business operations and artmaking practice; evaluate vulnerabilities; and take proactive steps to reduce hazards before they happen. Leave with a worksheet to use for your own studio/office/facility assessment!

Business Continuity - Tuesday, August 18, 1:00-2:15PM Pacific - online. Basics Track. When disruption strikes, the question is: how do you keep going to keep revenue flowing, carry out your mission, and secure artistic and other assets? This practical, encouraging workshop helps you build a plan to maintain your creative work or organizational operations during interruptions—whether from a major disaster, a personal emergency, or the sudden loss of a key resource. Register here>>

Artist Readiness 101 - Tuesday, June 16, 1:00-2:15PM Pacific - online. Basics Track. What is a readiness plan and what does it do for you? Understand the elements of a plan, identify the pieces you likely already have in place, and find connections to your everyday work/practice. Recording available here>>

Risk Assessment - Tuesday, June 23, 1:00-2:30PM Pacific - online. Basics Track. Learn how to identify potential risks, evaluate vulnerabilities, and take proactive steps to reduce hazards before they happen. Recording available here>>

Resources - guides, templates and worksheets to use at your own pace, in your own space, and customizable for your discipline, scope and budget size. Launching summer 2026.
Networks - training and funding to strengthen or create local arts response networks. Launching fall 2026.
Get Ready grants - funding to protect your individual practice or operations. Launching early 2027.

Archived Webinar Recordings

Upcoming Classes

Why trust BAARN?

BAARN is grounded in experience, expertise, and local input. Our team brings more than 65 years of combined experience in arts emergency management and disaster response, with faculty from the Bay Area and across the country.

The program is shaped by Bay Area artists, arts administrators, funders, and a California-based artist/activist serving as Local Coordinator. Most importantly, BAARN was developed in direct response to interviews and surveys with arts colleagues across the region.

Funded by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation and led by NCAPER, the National Coalition for Arts Preparedness and Emergency Response, BAARN offers practical tools, resources, and guidance to help artists, ensembles, and artist-run organizations protect their work and strengthen their readiness.

Click HERE>>

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