03.05.2025 –, Scheune
Sprache: English
Disasters are not as discrete as they appear to be. Whether fire or flood, it's difficult to separate out discrete events from climate change and the overall global disasters in the political, economic and social realms. Those who respond to disasters around the world find themselves thinking of disasters not as discrete events but as waypoints on a single, global continuum.
This talk briefly covers the essay "The Long Disaster", a collection of thoughts on gaps that communities can contemplate as they set out to on a path towards resilience against the local impact of global disasters.
Our world largely relies upon globally interdependent organizations such as governments and corporations. Many argue that these institutions have brought us unprecedented peace and prosperity. Yet, with each hurricane, earthquake or armed conflict, the fragility of these systems becomes evident while the consequences of their failure bleeds across borders.
Instead of formulating distinct responses through these large, impersonal systems, addressing the Long Disaster involves a radically different approach. The Long Disaster Responder doesn’t rush in, because they’ve been there all along, working within existing networks and fostering communal efforts to prepare for the durable disasters on the horizon. Before the disaster, this work seems mundane. It is only during the disaster that its true power shows.
Just like the essay it's based from, this talk will briefly go into the six gaps communities may want to contemplate: Psychological, Skills, Resources, Communications, Community, Empathy.
Nick Farr (He/Him) is a Certified Public Accountant based in Michigan, USA. Prior to the birth of his child, he assisted as a volunteer responder in a variety of disasters around the world, most recently during the Mexico City earthquake in 2017. He has previously served as an emcee, organizer and catalyst for various different hacker and maker community efforts in Europe and the Americas.