Resilience Bristol Knowledge Café September 2009 Philippa Bayley

A disclaimer…

What is resilience? The ability to dance with whatever life brings - Bob Stilger

Resilient….hmmm Nimble Resourceful Creative Flexible Adaptive/adaptable Positive Forward-looking Community/people Bounce back

What is resilience? The ability to dance with whatever life brings - Bob Stilger “… pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and start all over again…” adapting well in the face of adversity, trauma, tragedy, threats and stress capacity of a system to undergo change and still retain its basic function and structure

Who is it important for? Individuals Families Communities Cities, regions, nations… Species and ecosystems

Can we build resilience? Personal resilience and community resilience are closely intertwined - Bob Stilger Are they the same thing? Which comes first? How do we do it?

Are they the same thing?

Which comes first?

How do we do it?

Building individual resilience: A resilient person: Thinks well of themselves Trusts others Regulates their emotions Maintains positive expectations Utilizes intellectual and emotional intelligence in problem solving

Building individual resilience:

A resilient person:

Thinks well of themselves

Trusts others

Regulates their emotions

Maintains positive expectations

Utilizes intellectual and emotional intelligence in problem solving

“… resilience is an ongoing interaction between nature and nurture, encouraged by supportive relationships…” Froma Walsh Making meaning of adversity Maintaining a positive outlook Finding purpose beyond self, family and trouble through spiritual convictions Resilience therapy - Angie Hart, University of Brighton Ability to “bounce up”, not just bounce back

Making meaning of adversity

Maintaining a positive outlook

Finding purpose beyond self, family and trouble through spiritual convictions

Resilience therapy - Angie Hart, University of Brighton

Ability to “bounce up”, not just bounce back

Building community resilience: Built from the bottom; built into the fabric of the community experiential Empowerment of individuals knowledge skills personal development Open communication Respect “ Collective genius” Involve unlikely partners our own resilience is not enough

Built from the bottom; built into the fabric of the community

experiential

Empowerment of individuals

knowledge

skills

personal development

Open communication

Respect

“ Collective genius”

Involve unlikely partners

our own resilience is not enough

Building resilient systems Resilience Alliance “ Resilience Thinking” Managing, rather than building resilience Resilient social-ecological systems have the potential to sustain development in a manner that does not lead to loss of future options. Resilient systems provide capacity for renewal and innovation in the face of rapid transformation and crisis.

Building resilient systems

Resilience Alliance

“ Resilience Thinking”

Managing, rather than building resilience

Properties of resilient systems Diversity Work with natural cycles Modular (vs. over connected) Tight feedbacks Social capital Learning, experimentation, change Local Redundancy Ecosystem Services

Properties of resilient systems

Diversity

Work with natural cycles

Modular (vs. over connected)

Tight feedbacks

Social capital

Learning, experimentation, change

Local

Redundancy

Ecosystem Services

A few further thoughts: We Can Do That Around Here (Annie Hudson) Common themes: Positive outlook - flexible optimism Communication/community Empowerment - agency, mastery Coherent narrative - shared or individual Flexibility Context dependent - no one-size fits all

A few further thoughts:

We Can Do That Around Here (Annie Hudson)

Common themes:

Positive outlook - flexible optimism

Communication/community

Empowerment - agency, mastery

Coherent narrative - shared or individual

Flexibility