IBS Associations
Environment and Society Program
Natural Hazards Center
Brief Biography
Carson MacPherson-Krutsky is a research associate at the Natural Hazards Center and at Boise State University sharing her positions equally. She is also the co-founder of the Boise State Hazard and Climate Resilience Institute whose mission is to connect researchers, students, and community partners to collaboratively address community resilience research and practical needs. In addition, Carson is the co-owner of HazardReady, LLC, a company that provides personalized risk and preparedness information via easy to use websites. She holds degrees in geology from Western Washington University (BS), the University of Montana (MS), and Boise State University (PhD).
Her research incorporates social science methods to investigate what motivates people to take protective actions and to assess which types of risk communication styles are most effective at motivating people to prepare. Carson is also interested in creating multimedia products (e.g., infographics, websites, videos, workshops) that convey complex or technical information in engaging and user-friendly ways. During her graduate studies, she worked closely with local emergency managers to develop materials and test them. Carson is passionate about making connections across disciplines, sectors, and with community members to ensure that the science we do can help support real world decision-making in communities of all shapes, sizes, and backgrounds.
Carson joined the Natural Hazards Center in the fall of 2021. Her work involves developing interactive workshops for practitioners that focus on risk communication best practices with specific emphasis on socially vulnerable groups. This work is in partnership with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and builds upon existing Natural Hazard Center resources.
