Resilient Communities

We are social beings who interact with each other, for better or worse, within our small communities – family, friends, work, and leisure, and in our large communities – local – nationally and globally.
Each of us is affected by the resilience or lack of resilience in our communities.

A resilient community is characterized by:

  • Physical and psychological safety. This prevent cronic alarm situations (Read about the Thinking Brain and the Alarm Centre).
  • Freedom of speech and openness – preventing narrow worldviews in our heads (Read more: Attention – Spotlight of the Brain).
  • Good ways to handle disagreements and conflicts (Read more: bullying and conflict). A wise man once said that democracy is a civilized way to disagree.
  • A high degree of tolerance. Diversity is seen as strength, not as something dangerous or strange (Research by Richard Florida about tolerance).
  • A high degree of equality. Societies with a high degree of economic equality perform better in every way than societies with massive inequality (Research by Wilkinson and Pickett about economic inequality).

If you are particularly interested in this subject, here is a book with exciting knowledge about resilient communities: Handbook of Adult Resilience, Reich, Zautra & Hall (Eds.). Guildford 2010.