COVID-19 Research at the Community Level
Oct 6, 2020, 10:45 AM, Posted by Alonzo L. Plough, Carolyn Miller
What investments, priorities and values are shared by communities that are faring better in the COVID-19 pandemic?
Fifteen years ago the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) confronted a puzzling question that still resonates today: Why can some communities rebound after disasters, while others are unable to recover? We first studied this in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Some parts of the Gulf Coast were irreparably damaged, while others were able to recover. Researchers at the RAND Corporation, with RWJF support, sought to identify the qualities that resilient communities shared after a natural disaster, such as the strength of collaborations among government and non-governmental organizations pre-disaster and robust plans to support those most affected. The same team later built on that research by examining community well-being after other types of disasters, including economic downturns and community violence. The researchers partnered with local governments and—time and again—found that prioritizing equity and building collaborative networks bolstered communities under extreme stress.