Community resilience hubs are well-known, trusted, non-governmental organizations that are regularly used by nearby residents. These community organizations address chronic stressors, such as unemployment, food insecurity, and public health challenges, by connecting residents to resources and services through their day-to-day "steady state" operations. Additionally, resilience hubs invest in more resilient physical assets such as solar and battery back up power and infrastructure upgrades to better serve their community during emergencies. 

As climate change brings more flooding, heat waves, and severe storms to the District, resilience hubs can complement existing District emergency response activities while also meeting the everyday needs of communities year-round.

How does DOEE support community resilience hubs?

Climate Ready DC and Resilient DC call for the District Government to support the expansion of community resilience hubs. DOEE works with other agencies, including the Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency (HSEMA), to provide guidance and technical assistance to existing and prospective resilience hubs. While District government does not designate, certify, or operate community resilience hubs, maintaining relationships with hubs across the District is a key component of ensuring the District and its residents are prepared to withstand a wide range of shocks and stressors. 

Community of Practice (CoP): The Community of Practice is a space for resilience hub partners to learn, share best practices, network, and share resources such as training and funding opportunities. The CoP is convened quarterly by DOEE and HSEMA and organizations interested in learning more about resilience hubs are invited to join. To get involved, fill out this interest form.

List of past and upcoming meetings:

• June 10, 2025 - slides
• March 18, 2026 - slides
• June 17, 2026 - slides
• September 16, 2026 - slides
• December 16, 2026

Technical Assistance and Guidance: DOEE and HSEMA can provide 1-on-1 technical assistance to groups that are interested in operating as resilience hubs. If an organization is interested in this assistance, please contact Tasneem Islam at [email protected].

Emergency Response Coordination: Organizations that are interested in responding during emergencies are encouraged to join the DC Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD) to help coordinate activities with other District organizations. 

Establishing a Resilience Hub

DOEE and HSEMA provide select technical assistance to organizations that want to become resilience hubs. This page outlines steps and resources that such an organization might consider.

All resilience hubs may look different – from the way they were formed and their facility types to where they are located and who they serve. This reflects exactly what hubs were meant to do: enhance resilience across five foundational areas while also meeting the unique needs of the communities they serve. 

There is no standardized process by which resilience hubs are formed. From the location and facility type to services offered and people served, every resilience hub meets unique needs in the community. As such, community organizations should feel empowered to begin taking steps to learn more about resilience hubs and what they can do to build resilience for themselves and their trusted communities.  

The framework below includes suggestions on steps organizations can take and how District government can provide support along the way. 

1. Build a Resilience Hub Vision

   • Brainstorm and document key elements of your site’s resilience hub vision. Depending on your goals and timeline, you may want to differentiate between your current capacity/scale and what you aspire to develop. (e.g., services you provide, services you would like to provide, the role of your organization in the community, key populations you serve). (Example of a resilience hub vision). 

2. Site Evaluation and Audit*

   • Review and document all site specifications and enhancements that align with your vision. Align this review with the five foundational areas of resilience hubs. 
   • Request a site visit with DOEE and HSEMA. These agencies can conduct a site-visit to learn more about your hub and provide feedback on ways to improve the overall resilience of your operation.

3. Hub Strategic Plan

   • Review site evaluation report from DOEE and HSEMA and develop a strategic plan for implementation to see through the hub vision. 

4. Partnerships and Resource Support*

   • Review current list of organizational partners and identify areas in need of additional support or connection. Engage with District government and private partners to discuss partnership gaps, funding options, and technical site specifications, for meeting the goals of the strategic plan.

5. Site Activation Plan*

   • Create an emergency operations plan that documents the way the organization will function and support community members during emergencies. Establish what services can be provided in different scenarios, and plan ways to maintain relationships with community and partners during emergencies. This plan should be based on current capacity/resources, and can be changed when the organization grows. HSEMA can review drafted emergency operations plans and provide input.

Resources

These are some of the resources offered by District government and partners. For the most up-to-date information, please visit the linked websites directly.

Potential Partner and Precedent Organizations

• The Ward 7 Resilience Hub Community Coalition (RHCC) has led the District’s resilience hub work since 2017 and can offer expertise in resilience hub knowledge, strategy building, and meeting facilitation.
• The F.H. Faunteroy Center & Resilience Incubator (FC&I) is the District’s first resilience hub. Recognized for their track record and trust with the community through youth and family programming, FC&I was selected in 2019 to implement the first pilot community led resilience hub in the District. 
• Resilience Hub Collaborative
• Urban Sustainability Director’s Network – Resilience Hubs

Trainings

• HSEMA Academy hosts a course on communications planning in which you can learn how P.A.C.E. (Primary, Alternate, Contingent, Emergency) planning can help build resiliency within your communications operations.
• The Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) Program offers[IT11]  free training on how to provide critical support to first responders and community members during a disaster. 

Reference Documents 

• DOEE One-page Overview of Resilience Hubs
• USDN National Resilience Hub Guidance and Resources
• Ward 7 Resilience Hub Community Coalition Proposal

The Ward 7 Community Resilience Hub Pilot Project

The FH Faunteroy Center and Resilience Incubator (FC&I) in Ward 7 is the District's first resilience hub.

Beginning in 2017, the District began meeting with community members from the neighborhoods surrounding the Watts Branch tributary in Far Northeast Ward 7 to address climate resilience. This geographic focus area was chosen because the Climate Ready DC plan found that these neighborhoods face high risk from climate change. In 2018, these community members coalesced around three high priority climate initiatives: neighborhood-scale resilience hubs, a workforce development program for the resilience economy, and an expanded workforce program for non-college bound youth.

DOEE has since collaborated with the Resilience Hub Community Coalition (RHCC) and the FC&I on a community-led partnership to establish the District’s first resilience hub on the first floor of the "The Nannie@4800 NHB" residential building on Nannie Helen Burroughs Avenue in Ward 7. 

The project has been awarded funding at the local and national levels to enhance the physical, programmatic, and operational resilience of the community site. In 2023, it was awarded a three-year grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to further develop their “blue skies” operations and programming, including climate-related workforce development, and other environmental literacy projects. Most recently, DOEE awarded FC&I $540,000 to build a microgrid system of solar and battery storage. Georgetown University Law Center’s Center for Community Health Innovation provides legal advice and technical assistance on the establishment of the hub.

Learn more about the Ward 7 community engagement process and the RHCC proposal for a Ward 7 resilience hub.

The USDN and RHCC Model for Resilience Hubs

The District’s approach to resilience hubs is informed by the Urban Sustainability Director’s Network (USDN) and the Ward 7 Resilience Hub Community Coalition Proposal, both of which call for resilience hubs to incorporate five foundation areas through three modes of operation.