BEING prepared in the face of a disaster is the driver for OzGREEN’s new Resilient Communities Program in Bellingen Shire, starting 7 September.

The eight sessions will be delivered online and aim to bring together the region’s residents to develop disaster plans and create more sustainable, resilient homes and communities.

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“People may be feeling isolated, vulnerable and tired following the series of disasters our community has faced in recent years, and there are those who are keen to contribute to building a stronger community but not sure where to start.

“We urge you to join the conversation,” Program Manager Kathleen Hannah told News Of The Area.

The program is designed to inspire and motivate the Bellingen Shire community to work together to take positive action to address the many challenges currently faced.

Resilient Communities provides an award-winning framework for local people to talk about their emotions and voice their concerns.

It also empowers people to envision a more positive future and supports them to undertake personal and collective actions aimed at building community connectedness and resilience.

“Community connectedness is key,” said Kathleen.

“The relationships formed during our program is what drives participants to take action – we help each other to stay motivated to achieve our goals for a better world.”

Over 100 people across Bellingen Shire participated in Resilient Communities in 2020.

The program brought people together, fostering many new friendships and resulted in some inspiring community projects and resources.

The 2021 online program will run fortnightly on Tuesdays from 10am-12.30pm via Zoom, starting 7 September.

“When it comes to building community resilience, we know local people can innovate effective actions that strengthen the resilience of their community and we know need to be strengthening this work continuously, not just in times of crises,” said Sue Lennox, NSW 2020 Senior Australian of the Year and Resilient Communities Program Facilitator.

For more information, visit www.ozgreen.org/rc or contact Kathleen on kathleen@ozgreen.org.au.

Resilient Communities is a free program for Bellingen Shire residents, run in partnership with Bellingen Shire Council through its Bushfire, Recovery and Resilience program.

By Andrea FERRARI