About the Responder

The Responder e-newsletter is produced on a monthly basis and is emailed to members, as well as posted on this site. Each issue contains several feature articles submitted by regular contributors or guest authors, as well as information on good practices; timely information about TIM initiatives, events, and webinars; and recent industry news. The Responder is one of the TIM industry’s most recognized sources of information.

We are always looking for important information to share with readers, as well as ideas for future feature articles. We also welcome guest author submittals.

Have an idea? Want to submit an article? Contact Eric Rensel, TIM Network Liaison, at erensel@gfnet.com. (Feature articles are typically 600-800 words in length, but this is very flexible.)

If you would like to contribute to the Responder, please consider this editorial calendar:

Month	Focus	Philosophy
January	The World Comes to D.C. Transportation Operations Month National Mentoring Month	Develop content that discusses how emerging transportation technology and developments do/will affect TIM Encourage practitioners to share what they’ve learned
February	Planning Your Year World Radio Day Funding Month	Focus on interoperability issues Funding Month - develop content that discusses funding, grants, etc.
March	Winter Issues Lessons Learned World Meteorological Day 23 March World Theatre Day 27 March Alternate Routes Month Lifesavers Conference National Work Zone Awareness Week	Responders prepare for, respond, and recover from normal TIM events in adverse conditions; importance of good forecasting, products that are associated Focus on TIM as part of weather preparedness Highlight all TIM related videos Content that focuses on agency partnerships, technology and other aspects of successfully using alternate routes
April	National Volunteer Week World Book and Copyright Day 23 April and Intellectual property day 26 April World Day for Safety and Health at Work	An opportunity to provide content that highlights volunteer efforts (mostly fire and EMS/EMA content would be anticipated) Develop content that promotes sharing of best practices Day of remembrance and action for workers killed, disabled, injured or made unwell by their work.
May	National Transportation Week National Hurricane Preparedness Week World Information Society Day National EMS Week IACP LEIM Training Conference & Technology Exposition National Public Works Week	An opportunity to highlight transportation related content Look to include content that links TIM to all-hazards preparedness World Information Society Day - The main objective of the day is to raise global awareness of societal changes brought about by the Internetand new technologies. It also aims to help reduce the digital divide.
June	World Environment Day Fire and Emergency Medical Services Memorial Week National Safety Month International Fire/EMS Safety and Health Week	Look to create content that links TIM to environmental sustainability Develop specific Fire and EMS content
July	World UFO Day World Population Day International Day of Friendship	Chance to focus on “Next Generation” Content Focus on traffic congestion messages Focus on partnering success stories
August	Take a Month Off - You Earned It World Fashion Day Show Us Your Equipment	Share stories and pictures of PPE, including any emerging changes Encourage members to show us their TIM equipment with the goal of identifying the newest and greatest on the road
September	National Preparedness Month World Tourism Day Towing and Recovery Week	National Preparedness Month - look to highlight strategic TIM activities such as teams, plans, etc. World Tourism Day - content that demonstrate how TIM affects quality of life Towing and Recovery Week - develop towing content
October	National Cybersecurity Month World Food Day World Teachers’ Day World Mental Health Day National Boss Day International Day of Air Traffic Controllers World Statistics Day Drive Safely to Work Week	National Cybersecurity Month - create content that talks about TIM data security. DMS message hacking would be one example? World Food Day - Focus on TIM Freight needs World Teachers Day - Focus on TIM Training content World Mental Health Day - develop content that talks about responder psychology issues Boss Day - focus on content that highlights leadership issues Air Traffic Controllers Day - focus on content that talks about the use of aircraft in conjunction with TIM: helicopters, aerial investigation, drones, etc. World Statistics Day - share performance measures and other relevant TIM statistics
November	Movember National Farm-City Week	Movember - this one is for fun and could be a social media event. Show us your mustashe! National Farm-City Week - Chance to highlight rural TIM topics and the need to focus on freight needs
December	International Volunteer Day National Drunk and Drugged Driving Prevention Month	Volunteer Awareness Issues Recruitment Retention Recognition