Onward with More Love and Less Water: How Calgary Formed a Collective Action Movement in a Time of Crisis

By Buffy St-Amand and Kristina Roberts

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Volunteers

Volunteers

Before the unprecedented flooding that occurred in Southern Alberta over the past week, Calgary already had a remarkable energy and a love of community. With the highest volunteer rate in Canada, the largest commitment to corporate community investment, and a high percentage of philanthropic giving, altruism is part of this city’s DNA. What’s more, Calgary’s Mayor Naheed Nenshi is a community champion and an inspiration to Calgarians. The success of Nenshi’s “3 Things for Calgary” initiative built a strong base for helping your neighbours and caring about those less fortunate. So it’s not surprising that in the midst of a disaster, Calgarians did not respond with fear and panic, or allow the chaos and destruction to tear them apart. Instead, Calgarians built upon their positive outlook and entrepreneurial spirit, and banded together to support each other and to rebuild their beloved city.A great example of Calgary’s can-do attitude is the decision to proceed with the Calgary Stampede as planned. At the worst point during the flooding, the water inside the Saddledome was deep enough to cover the first 10 rows of seats. Water covered the grounds like a giant swimming pool from one end to the other. Even though there were less than 2 weeks between the peak of the flooding and sneak-a-peak, the first night of stampede, there seemed to be no hesitation that the Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth would go on. The new Stampede messaging “Hell or High Water” is the perfect example of the Calgarian attitude. This massive clean-up effort is possible because Calgarians all over the city have volunteered to roll up their sleeves and help out. The outpouring of community engagement has been so huge that it resembles a social movement. After reflecting, and paying close attention to all the stories emerging, we began to make sense of how this grass-roots social movement formed.Stage 1: Individual ActionAs people became more aware of the severity of the situation and the extent of the devastation, a sense of unease and desperation began to grow. Those of us who were fortunate enough not to be evacuated continued to see images of familiar places; the homes of friends and family and city landmarks; submerged in water. Calgarians were inspired to act, and to do anything they could to help. Individuals began opening their hearts and their homes to evacuees. Many even posted on Kijiji, offering shelter to strangers affected by the floods. This self-initiated action sparked the emergence of the movement.Stage 2: Community Momentum and NetworkingIn Calgary, 760,000 people are connected to social media – making up over 70% of the population. Through this connectivity, people began to self-organize and create informal networks of support. Social platforms such as Twitter and Facebook allowed people to rally around messages of hope and action. As a result, momentum started to build in the community.Stage 3: Formalization and Collective ActionWhat started as a hashtag on Twitter (#yychelps) quickly turned into a Facebook page and then a volunteer registration website. In half a day, over 3000 people ‘liked’ the Facebook page for Calgary Clean Up and indicated that they were willing to help out with the clean-up effort. YYCHelps became one of the coordinating bodies behind the collective action that would ensue. As of today, the Facebook page for Calgary Clean Up has over 35,000 likes.At 1:45am on Monday June 24th, The City of Calgary posted a call for 600 volunteers on their blog. Volunteers were to meet at McMahon Stadium at 10:00am. The news spread quickly throughout networks and volunteer hubs. Just 8 hours after the call for volunteers was made, nearly 3000 Calgarians showed up at McMahon Stadium to help, and the large majority had to be turned away. YYCHelps and other organizations continue to coordinate the massive force of support and determine how this collective action can be used strategically.Stage 4: TransformationDue to a resilient spirit, Calgarians have been able to strengthen their sense of community in the midst of chaos. There is still an unimaginable amount of work left to do and it is going to require a long term commitment. The question becomes how we can sustain this level of engagement. To make this movement sustainable we must focus our efforts where they are needed most, and spread out support so it can last for a long while down the road.There is no doubt that this disaster has transformed our city. But if we maintain the movement that has already started, we can rebuild an even stronger city, and allow this transformation to be a positive one both individually and collectively.How will you join the movement?To give money:Place 2 Give Southern Alberta Flood Emergency Relief Fund Benevity Southern Alberta Flood Relief Fund Red Cross Alberta Flood Relief FundThe Calgary Foundation Flood Recovery & Rebuilding FundTo give time:YYC Helps The City of Calgary Volunteer Calgary To give love: