As the immediate threat of Hurricane Helene has subsided, many of us in the Upstate are taking a collective sigh of relief. At Sustaining Way, a nonprofit organization in the Nicholtown community, our focus has shifted from immediate relief efforts like pop-up food distributions and debris removal to the long-term recovery of our communities.
On the road to recovery, it is vital to consider how to better prepare for severe weather events in the future. At Sustaining Way, part of our vision to create a more equitable future for all involves asking, “What would have made this event less catastrophic for our communities?”
One potential answer to this question is implementing resiliency centers, community-centered facilities designed to support residents during times of crisis, such as natural disasters, extreme weather events, or public health emergencies. Resiliency centers are valuable resources for everyday community needs, providing services promoting equity and sustainability. These models can be advantageous in historically marginalized communities that are already experiencing resource disparities and often find themselves isolated from traditional relief and recovery efforts.
Resiliency centers take many forms during crises, such as:
- cooling stations during heat waves,
- solar-powered charging ports during electricity outages,
- home bases for community electric vehicles (EVs), and
- information hubs.
However, the benefits of resiliency centers extend beyond disaster relief and recovery. Once startup costs are overcome, renewable energy solutions like solar panels and EVs provide secure and sustainable energy sources at lower costs than traditional electricity. They also act as a source of earned revenue for the community that houses them, usually providing sustainable event spaces neighbors can rent out for a profit. Resiliency centers act as dedicated locations to create a community around sustainability, equity, and justice.
While resiliency centers provide substantial everyday benefits, they also offer a lifeline during severe weather events, which are becoming more frequent and intense.
With resiliency centers in place, organizations would not have to scramble to find food, water, and shelter for those in need. Instead, a protocol, resources, and sustainable, reliable energy options would be readily available to each community with a resiliency center, providing safety and security during times of uncertainty.
Ideally, every community would have at least one space with electricity powered by solar panels and battery backups. Bidirectional charging ports in EVs would create mobile power hubs, allowing the EVs to supply electricity to essential facilities on the go, even during power outages. Cold storage would be available to save food that would otherwise spoil.
That’s why Sustaining Way has worked tirelessly over the past three years to upgrade existing community buildings into resiliency centers in the Upstate. One of these centers will be located at the Happy Hearts Center in the New Washington Heights community.
This particular center, which is expected to be off-grid capable by early 2025, will be equipped with a solar PV array and battery storage for off-grid capability, bidirectional EV charging stations, energy-efficient retrofitting, cold storage (for food preservation), and a commercial kitchen for food preparation.
Residents wouldn’t have to scour social media to find resources and supplies; they’d know to go directly to their community’s resiliency center. Local nonprofits, government agencies, and businesses could coordinate their immediate relief efforts through resiliency centers, creating easy-to-find distribution and support points that are accessible to most community members.
However, the timeline for establishing resiliency centers depends on funding. The final touches on the New Washington Heights resiliency center upgrades are pending additional grant awards. Other resiliency centers at the Dean Street School (Spartanburg, S.C.), Community Works Building (Greenville, S.C.), and Lockhart School (Lockhart, S.C.) do not currently have funding allocated. Still, grant proposals have been written and submitted on their behalf. Awards are expected in the spring of 2025, so if funding is allocated, upgrading centers would likely begin in the autumn of 2025.
Do you want to get involved in creating more equitable, resilient communities alongside Sustaining Way? Any donation through December 31st is matched and supports the creation of resiliency centers in the communities we call home. You can donate at sustainingway.org/donate or via Venmo @ Sustaining_Way. You can also sign up to volunteer with us at sustainingway.org/volunteer-here.
Together, we can create resilient communities ready to weather whatever the future has in store.