The word “resilience” is, unfortunately, having a moment.
Natural disasters have become more frequent, putting communities' resilience and ability to recover to the test.
From the southern Alberta floods of 2013, to the drought-fuelled wildfires that ravaged Fort McMurray and northern Alberta and B.C. in 2016, to the fire that tore through Jasper and the surrounding mountain parks areas last summer, not to mention August’s hailstorm that badly damaged homes and vehicles in north Calgary, the second-costliest insurance event in Canada’s history at $2.8 billion.
Following each of these events, T-shirts were printed with slogans like “Fort Mac Strong” or the Calgary Stampede's impromptu slogan for 2013, “Hell or High Water,” putting the emphasis on most people's first understanding of the word resilience — according to Oxford, the "capacity to withstand or to recover quickly from difficulties; toughness.”
But, as time passes, resilience comes to mean different things, reflecting its secondary definition: "The ability of a substance or object to spring back into shape; elasticity."
New research from Dr. Mahed Choudhury, a postdoctoral research associate with the Faculty of Social Work at the University of Calgary, is focused on the “R” word.
Before we start, however, he corrects me.
“I just refer to these events as disasters," says Choudhury, PhD. "They're often fuelled by climate change, so there's nothing that's 'natural' about them. As they unfortunately are occuring more often, we need to learn to live and co-exist with these hazards and manage risk sustainably.
“And part of this is that, as local communities bear the brunt of disaster, it is important to understand communities’ own notion of resilience.”
Why the meaning of ‘resilience’ is so important
Choudhury, along with Social Work co-investigator Dr. Julie Drolet, PhD, set out to explore this, beginning by examining community resilience following the 2013 southern Alberta floods.
At $1.7 billion, the floods were among the costliest disasters in Canadian history. Choudhury notes the floods were followed by a decade of government investment that included many millions in infrastructure improvements, along with initiatives aimed at enhancing community resilience.
“It is now claimed that some of the flood-affected communities are more resilient than ever," he says.
"In our research, we’re looking to discover if that’s true and to understand what the communities in question think about their own resilience. Our study looks to capture what resilience means to the people who live there.”
As Choudhury explains it, this research has important "real-world" implications because federal and provincial policies and planning around disasters have adopted “resilience” as a central approach in managing emergencies and disasters.
The meaning of nearly any word can change, depending on who is using it. In this case, the definition and meaning of “resilience” is being formulated by policymakers, assorted experts and decision-makers. That meaning often disregards local perspectives and voices.
“So, I think it’s critical to investigate alternative meanings, possibilities and forms of resilience from a community's own perspective, an area which is under-researched, especially following a natural disaster,” he says.
‘We want to hear from you!’ Looking for community members’ perspectives
In their quest to understand resilience from the community perspective, Choudhury and Drolet are looking to interview community members, service providers and disaster practitioners from southern Alberta, including, but not limited to Calgary, High River, Banff, Canmore, Cochrane, Sundre and Diamond Valley (formerly the towns of Black Diamond and Turner Valley).
“We want to learn from and document communities’ own narratives and reflections on their flood-related memories, experiences and learning, as well as their vision for future flood resilience,” Choudhury says.
“For example, after the 2013 floods, six communities from southern Alberta were offered a mandatory buyout of their homes and properties. We want to document how a community’s pathway to resilience was shaped by governmental interventions, deliberations, and through the ongoing negotiations, adaptation and finally through reflection.”
The purpose of the research, which is being supported by an Insight Development Grant from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, is to be ready for the next disaster. Understanding the true meaning of resilience to the community will better inform and prepare community and social-service providers, social work practitioners, government officials from the local to the federal level, agencies like the Canadian Red Cross, and first responders, including fire departments and health services.
“In the end, the best reason I can give to convince someone to take part in this research, is that the lessons learned from this research will help better align disaster interventions with local needs, perspectives, strengths and aspirations,” says Choudhury.
