United Way and Lane County receive $20 million to create community resilience hubs
The six new community resilience hubs will provide respite and support during smoke events and natural disasters.
New federal EPA grant will fund six extreme weather shelters across the county and invest hundreds of thousands in local community organizations
Last month, a partnership between Lane County and United Way of Lane County was awarded nearly $20 million over three years from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to increase community resilience in the face of extreme weather events.
Lane County and United Way of Lane County’s partnership, known as the Lane Transformation for Resiliency through Equity and Engagement (TREE) Network, will use the funding to invest in six “community resilience hubs” around the county. Each hub will provide resources and programming to benefit community members year-round and will provide additional support to residents during emergencies such as wildfires, smoke, or heat waves.
“This is a unique and transformative partnership between United Way of Lane County, our network of partners, and Lane County Government, especially Public Health and Emergency Management. These resources will allow us to expand upon existing relationships, formalize collaborations and communications, and ensure coordination in service provision and emergency response across communities.”
United Way of Lane County will work with partner organizations in each region of the county to hold listening sessions aimed at identifying the strengths and opportunities for greater resilience within each local community, conducting resource mapping activities, and participating in existing networks to gather information that will inform resilience hub development. Additionally, they will work to ensure that these investments stretch across the full county, including areas without an already identified resilience hub.
Responding to Community Needs
United Way of Lane County has been a leader in emergency management and disaster relief efforts in recent years. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2020 Holiday Farm Fire, United Way gathered and distributed donations quickly to organizations on the ground and convened local networks to share resources and expertise, all while centering community voice in response and recovery efforts.
“Lane County is excited to partner with United Way to advance community resilience in our region,” said Kristen Lee, Senior Program Services Coordinator at Lane County. “We are determined to ensure that resilience hubs are crafted from the ground up, with local residents helping to decide how best to make their own communities resilient. We believe that United Way is well-positioned to facilitate a process that prioritizes local voices, needs, and values that drive the development of the hubs. Lane County is looking forward to supporting this effort."
“Ensuring Oregonians and communities across the region are safe and prepared when disasters strike is critical. This EPA funding for Lane County and the United Way of Lane County to realize a network of resilience hubs—complete with training, equipment, and more—will prove essential for community members during weather events from devastating wildfires to extreme heat. It’s climate-smart investments from the Inflation Reduction Act like this that will help our local governments and agencies save lives during the worst conditions.”
The six facilities chosen to become hubs include the Senior and Activities Center in Florence, the Fern Ridge Service Center in Veneta, the Fairfield Elementary School Gym in Eugene, the Bob Keefer Center in Springfield, the Willamette Activity Center in Oakridge, and the Community Center and Library in Cottage Grove. The hubs will also be stocked with supplies for emergencies, and United Way will be collaborating with Lane County’s Public Health Reserve Corp to recruit, train, and activate long-term volunteers in each community when disasters arise. Funding will also go towards bolstering eight school-based Family Resource Centers around the county.
“Each local resilience network will benefit from county-wide Lane TREE convenings where resilience hubs will be able to share resources, participate in co-learning, and coordinate emergency management mechanisms to ensure swift and cohesive disaster response,” said Dale. “Additionally, through this grant we will be able to boost the capacity of local resilience efforts through trainings, technical support opportunities, and hundreds of thousands of dollars in targeted investments.”
The funding, which is part of the EPA’s Community Change grants, is aimed at helping communities tackle environmental and climate justice issues, including increasing community resilience and building community capacity to respond to climate disasters. Lane County and United Way of Lane County are one of 21 recipients receiving $325 million during this initial announcement, with the Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights still accepting applications on a rolling basis through November 21, 2024.