Twenty-fourth International Conference on Diversity in Organizations, Communities & Nations

Abstract

The impact of environmental and health shocks is first felt first by those on the front lines such as social services providers and the vulnerable communities they support. Thus, local disaster risk-reduction strategies are essential for resilience-building in community-based organizations and their local networks. This paper presents findings of a collaborative research study of 20 front-line staff who provide social services at a Toronto-based agency. Utilizing a survey and in-depth interviews, the project explored disaster preparedness and how social service provisions to vulnerable communities are implemented in emergencies. Conceptually, a Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) logic and a resilience lens were utilized to examine the agency’s capacity for developing sustainable partnerships with vulnerable communities, as framed by SDG 11—Sustainable Cities and (Inclusive and Resilient) Communities, and SDG 17—Sustainable Partnerships. Findings point to the need for organizations to utilize multi-hazard approaches and principles that are focused on assembling resources for communities, enhancing practical problem-solving skills, managing stress, and collaborating with communities to build social networks that can be engaged to build resilience locally during and after emergencies. To this end, and from a practice context, the paper advances the utilization of urban community-based resilience initiatives (CRIs), which are an ad hoc, temporary hybrid form of participation focused on service and civic activities and represent the highest level of citizen power. CRIs draw on existing community resources and organic leadership within vulnerable communities to build grassroots governance strategies that can collaboratively identify and attend to the needs of communities in emergencies.