Resilience Is How We Cope

What Is Community Resilience?

Community resilience means how we handle challenges—like storms, fires, or maybe even social unrest—and come out stronger. It’s not just about having supplies or plans; it’s about the everyday habits and relationships that help neighbors support each other when trouble hits. When a crisis occurs, a resilient community relies on the practices and connections it has already built.

Resilience might look different than you think.

• Street Protests in Los Angeles: When immigration policies threatened families and neighbors, people organized peaceful protests. Those gatherings weren’t just demonstrations; they became places where neighbors shared food, legal advice, and updates. The networks formed there can now help groups respond more quickly to other emergencies.

• Gangs in Longmont, Colorado: Faced with growing gang activity, residents partnered with a local nonprofit, El Comité de Longmont, and police to start the Gang Response and Intervention Program (GRIP). By meeting each month, they built trust, set up clear ways to share information, and made the community safer day to day.

• Lahaina’s Wildfire Response: After the 2023 wildfires, volunteers turned parks and schools into central spots for supplies, held lei-making memorials, and used ham radios to send alerts. Drawing on local traditions of caring for the land and each other, they filled gaps before and since outside help arrived.

What a difference a decade makes

A decade ago Katrina highlighted how ill prepared, and improperly focused, we were when disaster planning meant stronger flood barriers and faster first responders. Today, we must invest in community skills and trust. Neighbors map evacuation routes together, run community “hubs” for sharing resources and hosting workshops—from bike repairs to garden planting—that strengthen social bonds. By building these everyday networks, communities are better able to handle the challenges that lie ahead.  Yes, we need first responders, but without each other it won’t be enough.