Disaster Preparedness
Ready for Anything. With extreme weather events becoming more and more common, it is imperative that we prepare ourselves for them. Collective Resilience takes a community-centered and equity approach to disaster preparedness. Resilience hubs can be set up as one-stop-shops for essential services and supplies before, during and after emergencies, from fires to earthquakes.
General Resources
Resilience Hubs staff and committee members at resilience hubs are encouraged to take advantage of the free CERT classes offered by many cities.
Here is a suggested list of emergency supplies for resilience hubs.
Find resources about how to start a mutual aid program here.
Listos California is a statewide network which provides a plethora of accessible in-language information.
Resilience Hubs and Extreme Heat
Extreme heat is becoming more frequent and intense, posing significant health risks, especially to vulnerable populations. Prolonged exposure can lead to heat exhaustion, heatstroke, and exacerbate existing health conditions. Resilience hubs can be lifesavers to vulnerable populations, from unhoused communities to individuals without access to air conditioning. Libraries are natural cooling centers, but with a little planning places of worship and community centers can serve as cooling centers as well.
Small-scale Projects
Larger-Scale Projects
Offer Community Hydration Stations
Place water stations outside and inside of your hub offering free access to clean drinking water during extreme heat events.
Plant trees
Plant trees at your hub and/or in the surrounding neighborhood to provide shade, reduce urban heat and improve air quality.
Share Resources about Heat Relief
Send out digital resources as well as print out information about heat relief in the neighborhood: nearby cooling centers, parks with shaded trees and public pools. Also send out digital resources and share posters to educate community members about extreme heat illnesses.
Become a Cooling Center
Provide an air-conditioned environment for relief during heatwaves.
Train Volunteer Heat Relief Teams
Survey neighbors and community members to understand where vulnerable individuals live. Then train volunteers to go door-to- door offering support and resources to them during heatwaves.
Coordinate Supplies Distribution
Distribute water and other supplies to unhoused communities and other vulnerable populations.
Resources
Resilience Hubs during Wildfires
Climate change is increasing the risk and intensity of wildfires in California, leading to longer fire seasons and even more severe blazes. Warmer temperatures and drier conditions, exacerbated by drought and strong winds, create more fuel for fires and increase the likelihood of ignition and rapid spread.
Small-scale Projects
Larger-Scale Projects
Emergency Response Coordination
Resilience hubs can serve as central points for disseminating information during wildfires, coordinating resource distribution, and assisting with navigating complex aid processes.
Provide Access to Backup Power
Resilience hubs can provide backup power and cooling during power outages and heatwaves, as well as phone charging stations.
Coordinate Wildfire Preparation Resources
Coordinate wildlife preparation workshops and resources, from evacuation plans to home hardening.
Serve as an Evacuation Center
Some resilience hubs coordinate with the Red Cross and open up as emergency shelters for nearby fire migrants.
Become a Clean Air Center
Resilience hubs can provide spaces for residents to get relief from wildfire smoke.
Become a Demonstration Site
Resilience hubs can be living learning lab for wildfire prevention, demonstrating innovative strategies to prevent fires through building and landscaping.
