Community Resilience to Extreme Weather (CREW), Toronto, Canada.
Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada.
Can J Public Health. 2020 Dec;111(6):890-896. doi: 10.17269/s41997-020-00432-0. Epub 2020 Oct 26.
The Lighthouse Project (2017-2018) explored the role that faith-based organizations (FBOs) might play as resilience hubs for climate-related stresses and extreme weather emergencies in disadvantaged urban environments of three cities. This paper discusses the role that public health played in these initiatives and makes an appeal for more participatory, community-engaged public health in light of the persistent gaps in its approach to equitable climate change preparedness.
Pilots were initiated in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA): Brampton's Emergency Managers offered pre-selected FBO volunteers specialized training to be part of the city's emergency response in establishing FBO sites as emergency muster stations. An environmental organization in Hamilton explored how its existing networks could rally around a local social resilience challenge, and a community organizer in Toronto undertook network building to support mostly newcomer populations in one inner-city neighbourhood. All pilots used a mix of cold calling, workshops, municipal presentations, and participation in local programming and public events. Two convened local working groups.
By the end of the pilot, Brampton's Emergency Management Office had made one contractual relationship with an FBO and its volunteers. In Hamilton, a multi-stakeholder network emerged to support the climate preparedness of agencies serving local vulnerable populations. In Toronto, a residents' working group was established to address neighbour well-being and emergency response in one apartment tower. Work in all three communities is ongoing.
Multi-stakeholder support for community organizations and local volunteers can enable partnerships in neighbourhood-level climate resilience-before, during and after extreme weather events. Public Health, while not typically top-of-mind as a key ally in this work, is well positioned to make a contribution. Consistent with place-based approaches, an emergent community development design enabled community animators to catalyze collaborations to suit the on-the-ground realities of each site.
灯塔项目（2017-2018 年）探讨了信仰组织（FBO）在三个城市的弱势城市环境中可能发挥的作用，作为与气候相关的压力和极端天气紧急情况相关的弹性中心。本文讨论了公共卫生在这些倡议中所扮演的角色，并呼吁在其公平应对气候变化准备方面持续存在差距的情况下，开展更多参与性、社区参与式的公共卫生工作。
在大多伦多地区和汉密尔顿地区（GTHA）启动了试点项目：布兰普顿的应急管理人员为预先选定的 FBO 志愿者提供了专门培训，以便在建立 FBO 站点作为应急集合站时成为该市应急响应的一部分。汉密尔顿的一个环境组织探讨了其现有网络如何围绕当地社会弹性挑战进行集结，以及多伦多的一位社区组织者开展网络建设，以支持一个内城社区的主要新移民群体。所有试点项目都采用了冷电话、研讨会、市政厅演讲以及参与当地计划和公共活动等多种方式。两个试点项目召集了当地工作组。
试点结束时，布兰普顿的应急管理办公室与一个 FBO 及其志愿者建立了一项合同关系。在汉密尔顿，一个多利益相关者网络已经出现，以支持为当地弱势人群服务的机构的气候准备工作。在多伦多，一个居民工作组已经成立，以解决一栋公寓楼的邻里福祉和应急响应问题。所有三个社区的工作仍在继续。
多利益相关者对社区组织和当地志愿者的支持可以在极端天气事件之前、期间和之后实现邻里层面的气候弹性伙伴关系。公共卫生虽然通常不是这项工作的关键盟友，但它有能力做出贡献。与基于地点的方法一致，一种新兴的社区发展设计使社区推动者能够促成适合每个地点实际情况的合作。
