Findings from Follow-up Interviews

Abstract

The Coastal Community Challenges-Community-University Research Alliance (CCC-CURA) project was a longitudinal project that encompassed a second series of interviews in 2014 in order to determine whether there were changes over time in these communities that were related to awareness and actions to adaptation and resilience. The second interviews also examined the role that the CCC-CURA project played in enhancing resilience and governance in these studied communities. The results suggested that, in general, perceptions and attitudes toward extreme events did not really change over time. While, in general, people were more aware of the risks, this did not necessarily translate into action. In both provinces (Québec and New Brunswick), people believed that governments were ready in case of emergency; however, communication for some remained a challenge. Contrary to the first interviews, most people understood resilience and believed that they were resilient. In terms of knowledge of the CCC-CURA project, few were involved and, therefore, benefited from the interventions. The second series of interviews have demonstrated the importance of sustained interventions in order to enhance resilience capacity in a community. Without continuous efforts, people tend to revert back to old habits and few changes occur.