SESSION 4: The First Foundational Focus of Building Population Mental Wellness and Resilience for the Climate Emergency: Build Social Connections Across Cultural, Racial, Economic, Geographic, and Organizational Boundaries in the Community
PRESENTERS: Bob Doppelt, ITRC Coordinator and Robin Saenger, Founding Director, Peace4Tarpon
PROGRAM:
The importance of “strong and weak” social connections to overcome toxic social isolation and loneliness, build neighborhood connections that can assist during the first 3-5 days of disasters and beyond, and provide the ongoing emotional support and practical assistance needed to prevent and heal individual, community, and societal traumas during adversities.
Methods for building Bonding, Bridging, and Linking social support networks. The importance of building connections among civic, non-profit, private, and public sector organizations in communities to build population mental wellness and resilience.
Establishing neighborhood “Resilience Hubs” as one possible way to enhance social capital within typically marginalized community members.
The importance of promoting pro-social social narratives and stories to build social capital.
Engaging disenfranchised and marginalized people in building social connections.