The increase in climate-related natural disasters and the expenditures associated with recovery efforts have created a demand to improve community disaster preparedness and resiliency. Community resilience refers to the collective ability of a neighborhood or region to deal with stressors and efficiently resume the rhythms of daily life through cooperation.[1] A community’s investment in its residents holds significant promise for rural areas that are often disconnected due to population dispersion and distance between population centers. In addition, rural communities often have a limited amount of community resources due to their size and the outflow of economic and social assets to larger, urban areas.
One method to build community resilience and resources in rural areas is to increase the number of quality public safety and first responder workers (police, fire, EMT, etc.) by providing education and training for such workers. Training for emergency first responders can lead to improvements in public benefits associated with police, fire and EMT services and create additional social capital for area residents. Robert Putnam has identified social capital as a key to efficient and effective recoveries from disasters.[2] The related expansion of social capital empowers rural economies to develop and retain local talent, thus improving the quality of life.
First responders confront a diverse set of challenges, and without appropriate training they can become quickly overwhelmed when disaster strikes. Training programs that include a community resiliency emphasis will help engage the entire community, especially vulnerable populations, and create a cohesive community network. By training policemen, firefighters, EMTs, and healthcare professionals to interact with residents in a manner that builds trust and confidence, a community can add depth to these services in a cost-effective manner.
Cosgrove & Associates is currently partnering with Crowder College in Neosho, Missouri, to evaluate training efforts aimed at improving the quality and range of public safety workers in a rural, nine-county region in southwest Missouri. This region saw firsthand its need for increased levels related to public safety when it was devastated by an EF5 tornado in 2011. This disaster claimed 158 lives and produced an estimated $3 billion in damages, as well as additional untold social, personal, and economic costs throughout the region. Crowder’s vision is to bridge the gap between existing public safety training programs and current industry demands for well-trained and work-ready public safety employees. Through this program, Crowder seeks to meet industry demands associated with such services.
Early, short-term evaluation results suggest that the training/education program has provided an increase in training opportunities for current and potential public safety employees in the region. According to training participants and employers, the community impact, especially in areas outside of the population centers, has been positive. Cosgrove & Associates will continue to examine long-term results to determine if these investments in social capital have established a foundation for a community development approach that emphasizes building communities through public safety workforce development training programs.
Joseph Cosgrove—To learn more about his project & other community-building efforts contact Joseph at mr.joecosgrove@gmail.com
[1] http://daldrich.weebly.com/uploads/1/5/5/0/15507740/aldrich_american_behavioral_scientist_2014.pdf
[2] http://switchboard.nrdc.org/blogs/dlovaas/key_to_climate_preparedness_bu.html