Stronger Neighborhoods
This is a list of items from a Nextdoor.com post I started in 2016 on Building Neighborhood Resiliency. If you have more resources, please send them along. Thanks.
Building Neighborhood Resiliency
As the snow is here – in Australia it looks warm and sunny đ I just got this newsletter from an Australian group called Good Hoods. http://republicofeveryone.cmail19.com/t/ViewEmail/r/E604E4153CF800222540EF23F30FEDED/FB5FD6800361C4266B5BE456C00C2519 Here’s what they write: Dear Albert, During the recent Discovery Tour around Australia we met some great people and heard about amazing initiatives working to build community connection and resilience. We now have a network of passionate resilience experts, including yourself, and together we believe we can create a nation that is ready for anything. Following the tour we have been thinking through how we can continue to help people connect and come together. We know that resilience is a process and something that grows over time. One of the first steps we all can take is to connect with others so we feel a sense of belonging. Thatâs why we are launching Good âHoods â a new initiative to help create connections and a sense of pride in where you live. We want to connect people who want to work together to create more resilient communities, and share initiatives so the good continues to grow. We have shared some of the great initiatives from the tour that you may want replicate in your community, see a sneak peek below: Do good in your hood: learn more about the initiatives that we discovered during our tour. If you have an initiative you would like to add let us know about it so we can continue to grow the list. Street BBQ: thereâs nothing like a good BBQ to bring people together. Weâre encouraging our people to say that first hello to their neighbors this summer, and we want to share the resources with you too. To help get you get started weâre giving the first 200 to register their own street BBQ a $50 supermarket voucher. These first resources are based on what we heard would be helpful. We would love to hear your feedback and ideas on how we can continue to grow and improve Good âHoods. If you have any feedback please get in contact with IAGâs Shared Value team on 1300 306 493 and info@goodhoods.com.au. Please join us and become part of the Good âHoods community. http://www.goodhoods.com.au/ Sincerely, Jacki Johnson Group Executive People, Performance and Reputation Insurance Australia Group SNEAK PEEK One of the great initiatives we heard about. Learn about this and others on the Good âHoods website. In 2010 and 2012, floods devastated Uranquinty. So a local group, Progress Association, worked with the NSW SES to devise a disaster response plan to minimize damage from future floods. Find out more.

I’m not sure exactly where this one goes, but it’s such a sweet way to connect with your neighbors. https://www.facebook.com/carla.akkaoui/posts/10156251903035811
Here’s something that’s happening on this topic in SF. https://www.empowersf.org/
This article just got shared on LinkedIn. Seems relevant today and going forward. HOW TO BE EXPERIENTIAL DURING A TIME OF ISOLATION https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/how-experiential-during-time-isolation-jeffrey-abramson/
This looks very useful right now. https://mailchi.mp/mednet/ucla-longevity-center-new-brain-boosters-series-1082869?e=cd2dfa390c Staying Safe and Healthy During the COVID-19 Pandemic Dear Friends of the UCLA Longevity Center, I hope that all of you are safe and healthy during the challenging coronavirus pandemic. The Longevity Center has transitioned the Senior Scholars program to online learning, while all other educational programs have been temporarily suspended as we look to the feasibility of moving to offering our programs online using video conferencing platforms (e.g., Zoom). With the uncertainty and evolving impact of COVID-19, it is natural to experience anxiety, and like any emotion, anxiety can spread from person to person. Moreover, many of us are following current recommendations for social distancing, which will limit the community spread of the virus but also presents its own challenges with isolation and loneliness. You may wish to keep in mind some of the following tips to reduce the mind health risks during this incredibly challenging time: Be cautious about unreliable sources of misinformation in the media. Rumors and distortions increases stress and anxiety levels. Turn to trusted sources of information so you can remain up-to-date on emerging situations. Anyone overwhelmed with emotions should contact a mental health professional for assistance. Our UCLA clinics have rapidly shifted to telepsychiatry to respect social distancing efforts and continue to deliver mental health care. Hearing about the pandemic repeatedly can be unnecessarily upsetting so taking breaks from watching, reading, or listening to news stories, especially on social media, will help to reduce illness worries. For those who are sheltering in place, keep in mind that it can lead to isolation and loneliness, which increases the risk for depression, anxiety, and other mental health problems. To overcome isolation, stay in touch with friends and family by phone, or even better, use social media and videoconferencing platforms (e.g., Skype, Zoom, Facetime). Keep to your daily routine as much as possible. If you are telecommuting for work, be sure to take your usual lunch break and maintain your daily habits. Try to remain positive. Just as anxiety can spread from person to person, so can optimism and a positive outlook. Rather than focus on worse-case-scenarios, keep in mind what you are grateful about during these trying times. If you are feeling anxious, take deep breaths, stretch, do some yoga, or meditate. Try to eat well-balanced meals, exercise regularly, get plenty of sleep, and avoid excessive alcohol use. Staying physically active is important. Below are some resources you may find helpful, but be sure to check with your doctor before starting new exercises, which may need to be modified if too difficult. Chair Exercises: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8BcPHWGQO44 Gentle Chair Exercises: Sitting Only https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCTYAFTAaU0 Gentle Chair Exercises: Sitting and Standing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qK3EDJC_HZI For the latest information on COVID-19 (novel coronavirus) please check the following resources. Talk about your concerns with people you trust: sharing the facts about COVID-19 and understanding the true risk to yourself and people you care about will reduce your anxiety. Follow CDC recommendations to help prevent the spread of symptoms through social distancing; avoiding close contact with people who are sick; not touching your eyes, nose, and mouth; covering coughs and sneezes; cleaning and disinfecting touched objects and surfaces; and washing hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. With our Longevity Center memory and healthy lifestyle classes temporarily suspended, check out some of the computer programs and websites for improving memory and other cognitive abilities, inluding Dakim Brain Fitness (www.dakim.com or 310-566-1350), Posit Science and Brain HQ (www.brainhq.com or 866-599-6463), and Lumosity (www.lumosity.com). If you havenât already, consider reading about how to keep your brain and body healthy as you age. I have written several books (e.g., 2 Weeks to a Younger Brain, The Alzheimer’s Disease Prevention Program, The Small Guide to Alzheimer’s Disease) and there are many other excellent books on these topics (e.g., Moonwalking with Einstein: The Art and Science of Remembering Everything by Joshua Foer, Healthy Aging: A Lifelong Guide to Your Well-Being by Andrew Weil). You may benefit from relaxation practices that could help reduce levels of stress. The UCLA Mindful Awareness Research Center (http://marc.ucla.edu/) provides education and support for people interested in learning methods to pay attention to present moment experiences with openness. Several apps that provide meditation can be downloaded to a smartphone as well (e.g., UCLA Mindful, Insight Timer, Calm, Insight LA). To keep your mind stimulated, take a virtual field trip by visiting zoos, museums, mars, and more online and check out some of these web cams for an adventure from home: National Park Service: HawaiâI volcanoes https://www.nps.gov/havo/learn/photosmultimedia/webcams.htm Iceland: Hekla: https://www.livefromiceland.is/webcams/hekla/ Borcay Beach, Philippines: https://www.earthcam.com/world/philippines/boracay/?cam=boracay_hd Philippine coral reef cam: https://www.calacademy.org/learn-explore/animal-webcams/philippine-coral-reef-cam Venice Italy: https://www.webcamtaxi.com/en/italy/veneto/bacino-san-marco.html Northern Lights: https://www.webcamtaxi.com/en/canada/manitoba/churchill-northern-lights.html Nagasaki Harbor: https://www.webcamtaxi.com/en/japan/nagasaki/nagasaki-harbor.html Audubon Society https://explore.org/livecams/national-audubon-society/ Animal/wildlife cams and Zen cams Africa: http://www.africam.com/wildlife/ Puffin cam: https://explore.org/livecams/national-audubon-society/puffin-loafing-ledge-cam Bald Eagle: https://explore.org/livecams/national-audubon-society/puffin-loafing-ledge-cam Zen: NASA Space Station Cam: https://explore.org/livecams/player/zen-den/international-space-station Zen: Tropical Reef Cam https://explore.org/livecams/under-the-water/pacific-aquarium-tropical-reef-camera For more information from trusted resources visit: UCLA Health COVID-19 updates Los Angeles County Department of Public Health California Department of Public Health The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention World Health Organization Sincerely, Gary W. Small, M.D. Parlow-Solomon Professor on Aging Professor of Psychiatry & BioBehavioral Sciences Director, Division of Geriatric Psychiatry Director, UCLA Longevity Center www.longevity.ucla.edu
5.18.2020 Albert: Something that keeps occurring to me – perhaps it’s occurring to you, too – is that just about everyone who you see right now is probably a nearby neighbor. We don’t have a lot of people from out of the area – Airbnb, out of town guests. Yet people hardly take a moment to say hello. I think there might be some value in slowing down a bit and noticing who is passing you by. I understand that it’s not the easiest time to meet your neighbors, but it’s not impossible. One value to know who lives around you is that they might end up becoming a friend. I haven’t thought this all the way through, but I have a feeling that if we were all to take a little more time to notice who is around us it could be a good way to strengthen the neighborhood. Perhaps this idea deserves its own thread. For now, I’ll leave it here.