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In 2014, the City of Boulder was selected to participate in the Rockefeller Foundation’s 100 Resilient Cites initiative. The project aims to support cities that have experienced natural disasters in exploring and developing strategies around sudden and long-term issues, such as flood, wildfire, disease outbreak, and drought. As a first step in this process, the City seeks to understand people’s perceptions of resilience in Boulder. In collaboration with the City’s resilience staff and the Youth Services Initiative (YSI), Growing Up Boulder (GUB) worked with youth to develop their own meanings of resilience through art by considering the Rockefeller definition of resilience: “the capacity to survive, adapt, and grow no matter what kinds of chronic stresses and acute shocks [people] experience.”
To our knowledge, Boulder was the first member of the Rockefeller network to engage youth in their processes. We began with a pilot in the spring of 2015, explore ideas of resilience and to test methods that might yield meaningful conversations and useful information. We are continuing this work in the fall of 2015 with elementary and high school students. We are also collaborating with researchers in Mexico City through a parallel process with children there. Participants Pilot work included two groups of participants from the Youth Services Initiative, a program of Boulder’s Parks and Recreation Department that serves youth from Boulder’s public housing sites as well as two school groups, as follows:
Methods Growing Up Boulder used a variety of methods to facilitate conversation. With YSI, we used a resilience “question ball,” drawing, and mural making with elementary school students, and drawing, photovoice, a nested ecologies activity, and art boxes with middle and high school students. With the elementary, high school, and Mexico City partners, students drew pictures, maps, or diagrams of the assets and vulnerabilities in their city. Elementary children explored the values of the city (such as parks and open space, shelter, caring for animals, and healthy lifestyles), and identified values that were strong, in need of improvement, and of particular importance to them. Both children from Whittier and Mexico City also made a mural to represent some of their ideas, shared these ideas with each other through video, and developed recommendations for changes to the city that will enhance neighborhoods and resilience. For all three of the fall groups (Whittier, AVID, and Mexico City), students and teachers identified the importance of advocacy for ideas and taking action as important aspects of resilience. Whittier International Elementary School Important values included parks, open space, mountains, caring for animals, healthy lifestyles (biking, going to the farmer's market), taking care of the homeless in our community, and taking action. More results and images coming soon! |
Download the full report here:
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Boulder High School, AVID Class
Boulder High School AVID students created this anonymous poem as part of a workshop with poet and professor Tim Hernandez and Texas Poet Laureate Laurie Ann Guerrero. The students described examples of resilience in their lives, and Tim combined their statements into one poem.
Resilience is managing to move forward even through the darkest night with only a flashlight guiding you on the path you anxiously await the light of day.
Resilience is taking the news of the accident and handling everything calmly.
Resilience is my aunt after a flood and evacuation moving and getting back on her feet.
Resilience is moving from Mexico to give us a better future.
Resilience is my parents working hard to give my brothers and I a better future.
Resilience is my dad moving to the United States when he was only 14 years old. He came alone but managed to make it to the other side.
Resilience is having each other’s back, whenever they break down.
Resilience is getting back on the field when I thought I would never be able to go back.
Resilience is having the mindset of an adult when you are only 8 years old.
Resilience is my dad having the courage to learn English to keep his job as a cook.
Resilience is my mom raising her kids on her own and finding a job to support us after my dad was deported.
Resilience is my family’s motto. It is what motivates us to keep working hard. Resilience is the key to success.
Resilience is my mom going to work and taking care of my sister and I after having a miscarriage. Resilience is planning things out for four months and then losing it all in a matter of seconds.
Resilience is my family moving to the US from Mexico, raising 10 kids, learning a new language, adapting to a new culture, building a new “home”.
Resilience is coping with the complexity of losing a family member. Jim married my grandma but then lost his life to cancer.
Resilience is my mom coping with the flood all by herself because my dad was out of town.
Resilience is my parents continuing to love and support me unconditionally through a storm of anger and pain; even when I hurt them as well as myself.
Resilience is going to speech therapy every day, working on words and my S’s. Resilience is when the going gets tough in Spanish and you keep trying. Resilience is thinking about what I am saying. Resilience is my low muscle tone.
Resilience is my sister and I re starting our lives each time my parents needed to move to a different state. Resilience is making new friends every year for six years in a row. Resilience is letting yourself love even though you’ve been trained to know it won’t last.
Resilience is my mother coming to Colorado at 15 to make a new home.Resilience is my mom having me when she was only 17,leaving my dad’s abuse and taking care of me on her own. Resilience is my mom providing for her family. Resilience is my mom my aunt and uncle’s homework so she could continue to study. Resilience is my mom going back to school after 17 years to get her high school diploma.
Resilience is my mother taking care of me and my brother for 16 years without my dad. Resilience is my mom even at her lowest point being able to pull through for her kids.
Resilience is my family handling my grandmother’s stroke, learning new ways to act around her and helping her deal with her new life.
Resilience is my sister marrying a US citizen and having to move back to El Salvador for one year in order to obtain her residency.
Resilience is my mom leaving everything behind and moving to the US to give her children a better future in the US. Resilience is my dad losing his job and being unemployed and then finding another job. Resilience is my sister doing badly on a test but then studying hard for her next test and passing it. Resilience is me recovering from a death in the family.
Resilience is the deafening silence on the other end of the phone when the answer to the question “How did the test go?” It’s cancer. Resilience is answering “Would it make you feel better?” To the question “Would you like some water?” Resilience is not letting the pain defeat your soul, define your existence, however brief your time left is.
Resilience is managing to move forward even through the darkest night with only a flashlight guiding you on the path you anxiously await the light of day.
Resilience is taking the news of the accident and handling everything calmly.
Resilience is my aunt after a flood and evacuation moving and getting back on her feet.
Resilience is moving from Mexico to give us a better future.
Resilience is my parents working hard to give my brothers and I a better future.
Resilience is my dad moving to the United States when he was only 14 years old. He came alone but managed to make it to the other side.
Resilience is having each other’s back, whenever they break down.
Resilience is getting back on the field when I thought I would never be able to go back.
Resilience is having the mindset of an adult when you are only 8 years old.
Resilience is my dad having the courage to learn English to keep his job as a cook.
Resilience is my mom raising her kids on her own and finding a job to support us after my dad was deported.
Resilience is my family’s motto. It is what motivates us to keep working hard. Resilience is the key to success.
Resilience is my mom going to work and taking care of my sister and I after having a miscarriage. Resilience is planning things out for four months and then losing it all in a matter of seconds.
Resilience is my family moving to the US from Mexico, raising 10 kids, learning a new language, adapting to a new culture, building a new “home”.
Resilience is coping with the complexity of losing a family member. Jim married my grandma but then lost his life to cancer.
Resilience is my mom coping with the flood all by herself because my dad was out of town.
Resilience is my parents continuing to love and support me unconditionally through a storm of anger and pain; even when I hurt them as well as myself.
Resilience is going to speech therapy every day, working on words and my S’s. Resilience is when the going gets tough in Spanish and you keep trying. Resilience is thinking about what I am saying. Resilience is my low muscle tone.
Resilience is my sister and I re starting our lives each time my parents needed to move to a different state. Resilience is making new friends every year for six years in a row. Resilience is letting yourself love even though you’ve been trained to know it won’t last.
Resilience is my mother coming to Colorado at 15 to make a new home.Resilience is my mom having me when she was only 17,leaving my dad’s abuse and taking care of me on her own. Resilience is my mom providing for her family. Resilience is my mom my aunt and uncle’s homework so she could continue to study. Resilience is my mom going back to school after 17 years to get her high school diploma.
Resilience is my mother taking care of me and my brother for 16 years without my dad. Resilience is my mom even at her lowest point being able to pull through for her kids.
Resilience is my family handling my grandmother’s stroke, learning new ways to act around her and helping her deal with her new life.
Resilience is my sister marrying a US citizen and having to move back to El Salvador for one year in order to obtain her residency.
Resilience is my mom leaving everything behind and moving to the US to give her children a better future in the US. Resilience is my dad losing his job and being unemployed and then finding another job. Resilience is my sister doing badly on a test but then studying hard for her next test and passing it. Resilience is me recovering from a death in the family.
Resilience is the deafening silence on the other end of the phone when the answer to the question “How did the test go?” It’s cancer. Resilience is answering “Would it make you feel better?” To the question “Would you like some water?” Resilience is not letting the pain defeat your soul, define your existence, however brief your time left is.
Youth Services Initiative: Elementary School
Major themes included family, friends, nature and pets, sports, arts and food/fruit for resilient, and dying, bullying, animals being hurt, and lack of freedom at school for "not resilient." All photos are by Emily Tarantini.
Major themes included family, friends, nature and pets, sports, arts and food/fruit for resilient, and dying, bullying, animals being hurt, and lack of freedom at school for "not resilient." All photos are by Emily Tarantini.
Youth Services Initiative: Middle and High School
Photogallery of the Process
Major Themes Photogallery
Negative factors affecting resilience included housing; worry about negative global issues as portrayed on the news; feelings of cultural exclusion within the city. Supportive factors for resilience included nature, friends and family.
Negative factors affecting resilience included housing; worry about negative global issues as portrayed on the news; feelings of cultural exclusion within the city. Supportive factors for resilience included nature, friends and family.
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