Recovery, Renewal, Resilience

This case study, written by Eduardo Robles Chavez and the Manchester Briefing team, presents examples of effective vulnerability mapping during COVID-19 in New Zealand and Wales, contrasting these with Mexico and Chile where mapping focused only on infection rates. Read this case study by following the source link below (p.13-16)

Research by University College London (UCL) suggests that confidence in understanding coronavirus lockdown restrictions varies greatly across the UK and has dropped significantly since early national measures were put in place in March. As part of their ongoing research UCL determine that people generally consider themselves compliant with restrictions, but UCL caution that this should be interpreted in light of previous reports that show understanding of guidelines are low; therefore possibly reflecting belief in compliance opposed to actual compliance levels. Consider how to ensure residents in lock areas understand the rules that apply to them:

• Make direct contact with resident via social or traditional media, messaging apps, or leafleting through doors to ensure people understand their local restrictions. This may be especially important in combined authority areas as restrictions differ across metropolitan boroughs, the boundaries of which may not be clear to residents
• Encourage the display of digital tools showing local information about which restrictions apply in certain areas. This may be a simple video, or an interactive tool which people could access through localised digital marketing on their smartphones
• Consider where local, clear information could be publicly displayed e.g. digital advertising boards at local bus stops, or localised social media and television adverts
• Consider the demographics, resources and capacities of each community to establish the most appropriate methods of dissemination and key actors who could support this. In Mexico, this included: Video and audio messages shared via WhatsApp; audio messages transmitted via loudspeakers; and banners in strategic locations

Accelerating the use of online digital tools for improved resilience and pandemic preparedness is important for reducing the risk of transmission of the virus, for reaching a wider audience, and for sharing best practice more effectively.

However, when digitizing activities, it is important to consider those who may not have online access due to remoteness, digital illiteracy, and/or the costs of (smart)phones and mobile data, and to ensure important information still reaches these communities. This may be done by adapting activities into written or picture format, or providing necessary resources or training. Consider raising awareness of activities, training, and ways of organising the community:

• Raising awareness:
  • Conduct face-to-face health and hazard awareness programmes through infographics, podcasts, and videos on WhatsApp, Facebook, and Twitter
  • Use platforms that provide health advice about COVID-19 to raise awareness of other diseases that may have similar symptom e.g. influenza, dengue etc.
  • Use online community engagement as an opportunity to raise awareness about other risks, and resilience strategies e.g. flooding
• Training:
  • Establish 'community brigades' that can help prepare the community for emergency situations - educate and train them by creating and sharing instructional videos
  • Share podcasts promoting COVID-19 safety measures with local leaders and authorities, who play them on loudspeakers in the community
• Organising the community:
  • Develop virtual community networks that support the community to organise themselves, working with local leaders, authorities, schoolteachers etc. who can disseminate information widely
  • Conduct regular follow-up calls with community leaders to create feedback channels and to help monitor local situations