Post #2967124

Today I went an event collaboration between Community Garden Kjipuktuk and the Ecology Action Centre, talking about go bags and climate disaster preparedness but in the context of small groups they called pockets. We discussed what we might need for local climate disasters like ice storms and flooding and heatwaves, thinking about things like food and water but also crank radios and paper maps. Then there was a group-of-threes activity where we had a scenario like "it hasn't rained in a while and it's autumn at midday and there's a sudden heavy rain and some flooding, you're in a wheelchair, how are you going to get to the bus stop to get home?" Very #SolarPunk. A few things stood out about it. First, it wasn't solely about individual preparedness or about large organizations and governments and non-profits. It was about talking to your classmates, your work buddies, the people who live in your building. Not necessarily talking to them about climate disaster because that's a lot of anxiety for a lot of people, but about how to start those conversations in a way that feels small and specific and safe. "Candice has mobility challenges, if the power is out for more than 24 hours she can't get downstairs using the elevator, do we have a stair chair? A generator? Can we put a note on her file at the pharmacy allowing us to pick up her meds for her?" Not in a saviour way but a "let's think about a few specific things so we'll have a plan." Second, it had a ton of great prep work. There were handouts about maps, what goes in a first aid kit, family preparedness, zines, and printouts of the thought experiments used in the group activity. They had the contents of one of their go bags spread out on the table. They had links to additional resources, including things outside the usual prepper box like The Parable of the Sower. Third, it was accessible. N95-or-better masking was a requirement during the event, the room had good airflow and a HEPA filter running the whole time, no masks on chins or surgical "masks". That standard was set in all of the materials advertising the event, all of the communications, and was enforced during the event. They also had a pair of ASL interpreters who were both amazing. They would have been there regardless, but I had specifically mentioned I was interested in that because my hearing continues to get worse, and so the interpreters checked in with me before the event started to ask about my fluency, ASL vs PSE vs SEE, where they were going to stand etc. I picked up maybe 25% of what they signed, they were going fast and I don't know a lot yet, but I learned a few signs and found I was understanding more as we went along. And there were definitely times where I didn't quite catch what a presenter had said and I got it from the ASL, which improved my understanding and ability to participate. It was really well done. I wish more groups would follow their lead. I learned a lot about how I would offer an event like that. Yesterday I was bitten by a tick between my shoulder blades, couldn't reach it with tweezers, and I realized there's no one here I could ask for help with that. My options were solve it myself or go to the ER. And there are some scary illnesses carried by ticks here, and I'm immunocompromised. It was a very lonely experience. And I found myself thinking similarly on the way home from this event today. In previous places I've lived, I had my people. The ones I'd fight my way through a zombie hoard to meet up with. But here, I don't have a group of people like that. I've got some classmates I'm acquainted with, some people whose names I know when I volunteer at the bike garage, but I don't have a chosen family here yet. I don't know the names of any of my neighbours. I can print out maps and replace bicycle brake pads, but the most important thing to have during an emergency is people to work together with, and that relies heavily on having established relationships. I don't have that here. Finding it has been an exercise in futility and frustration so far. And I'm not sure what to do about it. But at least for those two hours in that room, I saw that people who share my interests and are willing to take care of each other. Those people are out there. I just need to find them.