Upcoming Webinars with Moderator and Discussant Jeff Hou: Bottom-up Community Resilience during and beyond COVID-19

During the COVID-19 crisis, community self-help and mutual support have become critical to the survival of many individuals, lending a lifeline to some of the most vulnerable populations in our society. In contrast to the government or institutional responses, they represent the agency and ability of the civil society groups to mobilize in times of crisis—a process that has proven to be effective in other disaster scenarios.

The first of a two-part webinar brings together researchers and organizers from Hong Kong, Manila, Melbourne, Shanghai, and Singapore to highlight exemplary efforts in the respective locations.

The second webinar builds on the discussion of civil society efforts on the first day to drill into the challenges facing the marginalized populations during the pandemic. This session brings together researchers and organizers from Hong Kong, Taipei, and Tokyo to highlight efforts of both supporting organizations and the marginalized social groups during COVID-19.

Through short presentations followed by a roundtable discussion, the session explores what these efforts have in common and how they respond to specific social and institutional contexts. It further examines the implications of the civil society efforts during COVID-19 for long-term social resilience in the Pacific Rim.

The webinars are organized by APRU Sustainable Cities and Landscapes Hub and the Pacific Rim Community Design Network.