Community Resilience Districts: Difference between revisions

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[[File:Diagrampeoplebsm.jpg|alt=A Community Resilience District brings in a whole community, not just NET volunteers|thumb|''A Community Resilience District brings in a whole community, not just NET volunteers. Illustration by Hugh Newell.''|551x551px]]
[[File:Diagrampeoplebsm.jpg|alt=A Community Resilience District brings in a whole community, not just NET volunteers|thumb|''A Community Resilience District brings in a whole community, not just NET volunteers. Illustration by Hugh Newell.''|551x551px]]
The idea of the Community Resilience District ("CRD") came from volunteers who wanted to provide different ways to organize a NET that were not dictated by the boundaries of neighborhood associations. The CRD concept not only offers this alternative but also encourages the formation of operational teams at a block scale, centralizes the administrative functions of a NET, and promotes the recruitment of Affiliated Team Volunteers (ATVs). This article focuses on explaining the roles and responsibilities of CRDs and NETs. The tone may sound directive, but the intention is for communities to adopt the elements that make sense to them and discard those that don't. Nothing in this article should be treated as prescriptive.
The idea of the Community Resilience District ("CRD") came from volunteers who wanted to provide different ways to organize a NET that were not dictated by the boundaries of neighborhood associations '''''and''''' wish to include community organizations and assets beyond NET. The CRD concept not only offers this alternative but also encourages the formation of operational teams at a block scale, centralizes the administrative functions of a NET, and promotes the recruitment of Affiliated Team Volunteers (ATVs). This article focuses on explaining the roles and responsibilities of CRDs and NETs. The tone may sound directive, but the intention is for communities to adopt the elements that make sense to them and discard those that don't. Nothing in this article should be treated as prescriptive.
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#'''NETs need the support and involvement of the entire local community, not just a few neighbors who are interested in preparing for a disaster.''' NETs can act as advocates for disaster preparedness and response at the local level, but they will require assistance from less-engaged neighbors to respond effectively after an earthquake.
#'''NETs need the support and involvement of the entire local community, not just a few neighbors who are interested in preparing for a disaster.''' NETs can act as advocates for disaster preparedness and response at the local level, but they will require assistance from less-engaged neighbors to respond effectively after an earthquake.
#'''Many NET Team Leaders prefer to focus on operational planning rather than administrative tasks.''' Some become leaders to plan for the response in their immediate area and may not necessarily want to manage rosters, conduct meetings, recruit others, or raise funds.
#'''Many NET Team Leaders prefer to focus on operational planning rather than administrative tasks.''' Some become leaders to plan for the response in their immediate area and may not necessarily want to manage rosters, conduct meetings, recruit others, or raise funds.
 
#'''There is a significant gap between the NET mission and the communities NETs serve.''' CRDs serve as a framework to pull in [[PBEM Community Resilience Team Mission, Vision, and Values#PBEM's Approach to Community Resilience|community resilience resources]] in local communities and break down silos between their missions.
Jeremy Van Keuren (PBEM Community Resilience Manager) presented the first CRD concept paper to NET volunteers on November 8, 2018. NETs responded optimistically to the presentation and directed PBEM to develop the concept further by piloting it in several neighborhoods. A pilot had already started in late spring that year in the St. Johns neighborhood, where it continues today. Jeremy also set about meeting with Downtown NET volunteers to develop a CRD charter, but the effort ultimately failed under stress from the COVID pandemic in 2020. Response to COVID, in fact, effectively shelved implementation of the CRD concept. A meeting of NET Team Leaders and PBEM during the 2022 NETcamp affirmed that the CRD concept is still something NETs and PBEM should explore pursuing.
 
As of 2023, St. Johns/Cathedral Park is the only NET that has piloted the CRD concept.


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# '''Keep response plans up to date.''' A response plan is a dynamic document. Even if a charter or operations plan is written, it should be regularly reviewed and updated as resources change.
# '''Keep response plans up to date.''' A response plan is a dynamic document. Even if a charter or operations plan is written, it should be regularly reviewed and updated as resources change.
# '''Build strong foundations.''' It's tempting to tackle all problems at once, but this leads to burnout and incomplete solutions. Instead, prioritize and focus on resolving issues decisively. Then, move on to the next priority, giving it the same attention. Be realistic about what can be accomplished based on available resources.
# '''Build strong foundations.''' It's tempting to tackle all problems at once, but this leads to burnout and incomplete solutions. Instead, prioritize and focus on resolving issues decisively. Then, move on to the next priority, giving it the same attention. Be realistic about what can be accomplished based on available resources.
# '''Networking in your neighborhood.''' CRDs are encouraged to bring other neighborhood groups into the goals of the CRD. A CRD must decide on their own ''whether'' to combine disaster preparedness goals with other community resilience goals. PBEM will only advise considering: does the community have resources and will to take on additional priorities? Does the CRD have access to expertise needed (PBEM cannot, for example, offer advice or staff time to assist with crime prevention)? Is there a program better suited to address the priority considered (for example, the Main Street program with Prosper Portland is an excellent approach to community resilience with an economic development orientation)?
In practice, CRD's guiding principles address problems raised by NETs in the following manner:
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|''Allow NET Team Leaders to take charge of a service area they determine themselves and turn in an Operations Plan for that area to PBEM.''
|''Allow NET Team Leaders to take charge of a service area they determine themselves and turn in an Operations Plan for that area to PBEM.''
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Details of these issues are outlined in an internal PBEM memo accessible [https://hcpaw.portlandoregon.gov/u/7Iit0gUIref-iK3R/402db007-baa3-4aaa-9ec5-2d21c3f93554?l HERE].
'''The CRD model is intended not just to resolve issues in NET organization, but to apply Community Resilience''' as a key concept of practice in volunteer teams. The implications of that mean:
# A CRD is not just a group of trained NET volunteers, but includes local volunteers and programs from any discipline that promotes community resilience of any kind.
# Disaster preparedness and response skills and knowledge are only one kind of skill/knowledge valued in a CRD.
# A CRD should be made up of community leaders who give all volunteers access to the expertise and perspectives needed to form and practice a holistic approach to community resilience.
Community resilience dividends are the positive additional outcomes of an active CRD. For example, among the most important things a person can do to prepare for a disaster is getting to know their neighbors. The CRD model promotes that activity through the Community Resilience Workbook.  It is well documented that when neighbors know each other, crime in the area drops. The effort a CRD makes promoting neighborhood connections results in a neighborhood more resilient from both a disaster prep and a crime prevention approach. Therefore, if a CRD takes an orientation to community resilience broader than the one presented in this CRD Guide, work preparing for a disaster may result in other community resilience dividends.
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== Community Resilience Districts Program History ==
== Community Resilience Districts Program History ==
The ideas behind CRDs coalesced into a draft program called "Neighborhood Preparedness Wards" in 2017. The Wards program was developed concurrently with the [https://hcpaw.portlandoregon.gov/u/yGPDVSHjw2PaY8NW/df598da0-00d5-4836-bed9-8b7cc53aff2e?l Portland Fire Bureau's Blueprint for Success concept], proposed by Chief Mike Myers, which included many of the same philosophical underpinnings. A concept paper was developed for the St. Johns neighborhood. The concept paper was presented to St. Johns NET and community partners in the spring of 2017, and the present committee approved moving forward with it.
The ideas behind CRDs coalesced into a draft program called "Neighborhood Preparedness Wards" in 2017. The Wards program was developed concurrently with the [https://hcpaw.portlandoregon.gov/u/yGPDVSHjw2PaY8NW/df598da0-00d5-4836-bed9-8b7cc53aff2e?l Portland Fire Bureau's Blueprint for Success concept], proposed by Chief Mike Myers, which included many of the same philosophical underpinnings. A concept paper was developed for the St. Johns neighborhood. The concept paper was presented to St. Johns NET and community partners in the spring of 2017, and the present committee approved moving forward with it.
Jeremy Van Keuren (PBEM Community Resilience Manager) presented the first CRD concept paper to NET volunteers on November 8, 2018. NETs responded optimistically to the presentation and directed PBEM to develop the concept further by piloting it in several neighborhoods. A pilot had already started in late spring that year in the St. Johns neighborhood, where it continues today. Jeremy also set about meeting with Downtown NET volunteers to develop a CRD charter, but the effort ultimately failed under stress from the COVID pandemic in 2020. Response to COVID, in fact, effectively shelved implementation of the CRD concept. A meeting of NET Team Leaders and PBEM during the 2022 NETcamp affirmed that the CRD concept is still something NETs and PBEM should explore pursuing.
As of 2023, St. Johns/Cathedral Park is the only NET that has piloted the CRD concept.
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