Effective disaster debris management requires more than resources and equipment — it demands seamless coordination across federal, territorial, and local agencies under extreme conditions. Moderated by a former FEMA contractor, this panel discussion will draw on recent experiences from Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico, and explore the real-world coordination challenges that arise when disasters strike remote island communities.

Panelists will discuss issues such as overlapping roles and responsibilities, communication breakdowns, permitting bottlenecks, contractor mobilization and resource prioritization. Through case studies and firsthand accounts, the session will highlight strategies that improved collaboration and hard lessons learned when coordination fell short. Attendees will leave with a deeper understanding of how proactive planning, clear operational frameworks, and strong interagency relationships can dramatically improve debris management outcomes during chaotic post-disaster environments.