Talking risk, enacting resilience: a case study of risk communication in a climate frontline community

Communities on the frontlines of climate change face disproportionate risks of multiple hazards. Although community resilience depends on effective risk communication, most research focuses on the information that individuals receive from authorities rather than that which they produce or exchange themselves—that is, “community-based risk communication”. In this mixed methods case study, we examined how community-based risk communication about climate change unfolded and informed community resilience over 6 months in San Bruno, California, using monthly surveys and follow-up interviews. Participants described their communication as multidirectional, localized, consistent, and actionable. They also identified five mechanisms by which it informed their community resilience: creating a trusted information infrastructure, building knowledge, cultivating collective efficacy, enabling action, and strengthening social capital. These findings suggest that aligning behind and investing in community-led risk communication offers a promising pathway toward community resilience amidst the multiple, compounding hazards posed by a changing climate.