An Examination of Social Capital and Communications in Municipal Emergency Management

Abstract

Despite decades of preparedness messaging from all levels of government, Canadians remain unprepared for emergencies and disasters. This multi-site case study examines the relationship between municipal emergency managers and community groups across Ontario to understand the role of social capital in the delivery and acceptance of emergency preparedness communications. From chambers of commerce to charities and non-profits, the cross- community group relationships examined here are strong; there are committed departments dedicated to emergency management within municipal governments, and community groups are ready and willing partners in the emergency management field. Communities are geographically, spatially and temporally bounded, supported by an array of trusted relationships, between members, groups, associations and extra-local connections. Accessing these pathways for building trust and communicating emergency preparedness information represents a significant opportunity for resource constrained municipal emergency managers. Emergency managers from upper, lower and single tier municipalities in Ontario were interviewed, along with several community groups providing services within the same municipalities. Research participants talked at length about their roles, strengths, and the knowledge they have of each other and other partners. In addition, these interviews explored the extent of any existing relationships, emergency preparedness involvement and how they see a future involvement in emergency management at the municipal level. The SARS-COVID-2 pandemic complicated these relationships, but also provided a unique opportunity to engage and navigate the largest society-level disruption in a century. Conflicting communications, regulations and frameworks created barriers to collaboration between municipal emergency managers and community groups. With nominal preparedness communications prior to the pandemic, the public health messages all but replaced any effort on preparedness messaging. Three themes emerge from this study: 1/ community groups can and are willing to act as trusted source pathways for municipal emergency preparedness communication; 2/ the pandemic demonstrated an opportunity to grow cooperation and collaboration between municipalities and community groups; 3/ that municipal governance in the pandemic was confused and uncoordinated leading to a crisis in public confidence.