ADKAR

 

I organized a presentation by Nicole Foss at St.Paul's University. She was ahead of her time - just like me

ADKAR for Societal Resilience: A Framework for Local Action in an Era of Economic Contraction

The coming years will bring sustained high oil prices, inflation, depressed economic growth, and rising unemployment. Global supply shocks (especially through the Strait of Hormuz), ballooning public debt, and fragile just-in-time supply chains make distant solutions unreliable. The solution is not to wait for federal or international fixes. 

ADKAR — the proven individual change-management model — at the community and municipal level to build local resilience. This creates a practical, scalable framework called ADKAR for Community Resilience. It moves Ottawa (and every ward) from awareness of the crisis to sustained local self-reliance. Each stage builds on the ideas in my recent blog post: simplify, secure essentials (food, water, clothing, shelter), shorten supply chains, support local businesses, reduce debt, and use tools like time banks.

1. Awareness — Recognize the Reality

Goal: Ensure every resident and leader understands the structural nature of the challenges.

Key messages:Oil supply tightening and energy costs are permanent, not temporary.

National debt service is crowding out public services.

Globalization’s efficiencies have become fragilities.

Impacts will hit Ottawa hard: federal workforce disruption, housing price correction, transport shifts, and higher crime from economic stress.

Local actions:Ward-level town halls and one-page “Resilience Fact Sheets” distributed door-to-door.

Partner with libraries, community centres, and churches to run “Economic Weather Report” sessions.

Use simple visuals (e.g., “What $5 gasoline means for your grocery bill and commute”).

2. Desire — Create the Will to Change

Goal: Shift mindset from “someone else will fix this” to “we can build security together.”

Key messages:Local control over essentials is freedom, not sacrifice.

Mutual support (time banks, skill swaps) is stronger than distant welfare.

Resilience is patriotic and neighbourly — not partisan.

Local actions:Launch “Ottawa Tough Times, Strong Neighbourhoods” campaign with resident stories and success examples from past crises.

Highlight quick wins: community gardens already feeding families, tool libraries saving money, car-share pods reducing fuel dependence.

Public recognition events for early adopters (e.g., “Resilience Champion” awards).

3. Knowledge — Provide Clear, Practical Information

Goal: Give people and organizations the “how-to” knowledge they need.

Key topics:Personal/household: debt reduction, home energy audits, victory gardens, basic repair skills.

Neighbourhood: time banks, bulk-buying co-ops, local barter directories.

Municipal: zoning changes for mixed-use and small-scale manufacturing, support for informal transport (e.g., cargo bikes, e-bike corridors), community food storage.

Local actions:Free online and in-person workshops (via Ottawa Public Library and ward offices).

Publish a “Resilience Playbook” — simple guides on halving household expenses, starting a time bank, and retrofitting homes for higher energy costs.

Create a city-wide “Local Skills & Services Map” (digital + printed).

4. Ability — Build the Skills and Infrastructure

Goal: Turn knowledge into real capability.

Focus areas:

Unemployment: Retraining programs tied to local needs (urban farming, home retrofits, small manufacturing, care economy).

High oil prices & inflation: Expand community-supported agriculture, local energy projects (district geothermal, solar micro-grids), and walkable neighbourhood hubs.

Depressed growth: Incentivize multi-family housing conversions, support for home-based businesses, and ward-level economic development funds.

Local actions:Pilot “Resilience Hubs” in each ward — co-working spaces with tools, training, and time-bank coordination.

Partner with existing groups (e.g., Ottawa Food Bank, Community Housing, Transition Towns) to scale successful models.

Municipal policy changes: fast-track permits for backyard farms, tool libraries, and neighbourhood energy projects.

5. Reinforcement — Make the Changes Stick

Goal: Embed new behaviours so they survive political cycles and short-term price drops.

Mechanisms:Celebrate visible progress (annual “State of Ward Resilience” reports).

Tie city budgets and procurement to local resilience metrics.

Institutionalize time banks and community land trusts.

Build accountability through transparent ward dashboards showing unemployment, local food production, and energy costs.

Local actions:Annual neighbourhood resilience festivals with measurable results.

Policy that requires every new city plan or budget to pass a “Resilience Test.”

Cross-ward learning network so successful wards share templates.

Why This Framework Works

ADKAR succeeds because it is sequential and human-centred. By applying it at the community level, we create thousands of small, mutually reinforcing changes that add up to city-wide resilience. It directly addresses the blog post’s warnings: instead of waiting for national leadership that may not arrive in time, we build trusted local leadership and social cohesion now.This is not theoretical. It is actionable today in every Ottawa ward. 

As a candidate for city council, I am committed to making ADKAR for Community Resilience the operating system for Ward 13 — and to pushing it city-wide.If you want to be part of the solution, start with Awareness: read the full blog post, then join or host a neighbourhood conversation. The going is getting tough — but together we can make our community tougher.

When the going gets tough...I won't quit.

Peter Karwacki, PMP

Managing Director, Peer Metrics

Candidate for Ottawa City Councillor (Ward 13)

peermetrics.ca | peterkarwacki.blogspot.com