Get to Know the Community

Truly knowing and understanding the community is the foundation of the Community Resilience Program. We provide a variety of proven resources for the discovery phase that can help you gain deeper knowledge about all aspects of the community and more accurately, confidently communicate about issues.

Step 1: Assessing Community Strengths & Resources

Whether it's the schools, social services, libraries, parks or an abundance of employment opportunities, every community has its advantages. This tool will help you identify the assets that give you something to build on.

Step 2: Identifying Community Weaknesses

Just as every community has its strengths, all have their challenges, including poor collaboration, a lack of access to services, low engagement or chronic problems such as poverty, pollution or crime. An honest picture can help you know where obstacles may arise, and this tool can help you do just that.

Step 3: Pinpointing Community Threats or Risks

Building a consensus around potential problems can be difficult. Seeking the perspectives of stakeholders and reviewing past issues will allow you to identify and rank the key challenges your community is likely to face. Get started here.

Step 4: Reviewing At-Risk Populations

During and after an emergency, there are individuals who will be left more vulnerable than other members of the community. Identifying groups that will need additional attention can help safeguard them during a crisis. Use this form to ascertain which populations are most vulnerable, where they're located and what resources they will need.

Step 5. Mapping

Creating a map that contains all information gathered in steps 1 through 4 can help you better understand the scope of your community's situation, and allow you to set priorities and assign roles to the members of your team. For each threat or risk: