This year, in view of gathering a range of perspectives from the field, GLOCAL collaborated with Sid-Israel to invite a guest author based on their expertise and contributions relating to Resilience & Societies. 

We are extremely pleased to spotlight the esteemed Prof Dorit Nitzan. Dorit is a pediatrician, nutritionist, epidemiologist, public health expert, and humanitarian who served the World Health Organization (WHO) for 17 years. She has held several high-level positions and is a member of national and international committees on health emergency prevention, preparedness, response, and recovery. Dorit has received awards from the WHO, the United Nations, the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the hospitals where she has served. 

The term resilience is borrowed from physics and mathematics, aiming to describe the ability to return to equilibrium after a hit without breaking. Resilient communities bounce back better by applying their adaptive capacities. Societal resilience assures that individuals in communities do not have to fend for themselves in emergencies but both receive and contribute to the support of others. Resilient societies are better equipped to prevent, respond to and recover from emergencies and their aftermaths. In such crises, community members are often the first responders, identifying local needs and assisting those in need. This was evident during the response to the COVID-19 pandemic in many communities worldwide, as well as during the Iron Swords War in Israel since the terrorist attack on communities residing on the border with Gaza and those in the area at the time. This article will look at the concept of Community Protection and how it unfolds in practice as shown by the KALAB initiative being anchored in communities in Israel. 

What is Community Protection? 

Community protection is built upon critical prerequisites: community engagement, risk communication, infodemic management, population and environmental public health interventions as well as multisectoral action for social and economic protection. It is linked to collaborative surveillance, safe and scalable care, access to countermeasures, and leadership. In the context of Health Emergency Preparedness, Response and Resilience (HEPR), community protection refers to “community-centered actions that protect the health and wellbeing of those affected, such as vaccination to protect from an infectious disease.”

Community protection is crucial to preserve people's rights, safety, security, dignity, leadership and capabilities. Local networks play a significant role in safeguarding their communities by facilitating interaction and implementing appropriate measures that align with the community's needs. To build trust, the leadership role in community protection requires actively engaging with community members and  listening attentively to them, assessing capacities, letting community members guide and lead, and gaining a deeper comprehension of their requirements. The leaders’ direct engagement with local, regional, and national authorities is crucial to meeting the community's needs.  

Two common approaches prioritize the involvement of communities, known as the "top-down" and the "bottom-up" approach. The "top-down" approach can become community-centered when authorities involve the communities and respond to their input throughout the process, from identifying issues, conducting assessments, designing solutions, implementing interventions, monitoring progress and evaluating outcomes. The "bottom-up" approach originates from actions led by the community itself through activities such as activism, advocacy and other initiatives. A third approach, the "intermediary" approach, helps organizations bridge top-down strategies and guidance to the needs of their communities. All three approaches are used for community protection when centered on the communities and their needs, concerns, feedback, and input. These approaches should be combined for issue identification and designing actions, as well as implementation, monitoring, evaluation and improvement. Each of the three approaches should be based on the “whole of society approach,” aiming to optimize effectiveness and efficiency and minimize adverse health outcomes in peaceful times and during emergencies.

 A new initiative called the KALAB Network has been developed in Israel through volunteering actions and with the support of central, local, and civil society organizations to serve as a model for community protection. The network is voluntary and has spread among communities as a lesson learned from the October 7th massacre. It has become evident that resilient communities with supportive systems are better equipped to withstand shocks, both on that day and in the following months. The same has been shown in natural disasters like earthquakes, hurricanes, and floods. 

The KALAB (Close to Home) Network - The Israeli Community for Health 

The KALAB Network is a volunteer-based community network that places the people and the community at the center of their activities in the field of Health. It uses the three approaches mentioned above, with the following objectives:

1. Leading the community emergency preparedness and readiness in the local health, security, and defense clusters. 

2. Life-saving activities during routine and emergency times as part of Magen David Adom.

3. Linking the community with the primary health care providers. 

4. Promoting One Health in the community (the health of humans, animals, plants, and the environment).

5. Advancing the overall health resilience of the community, families, and individuals through collaboration with available services.

6. Supporting KALAB’s volunteers through KALAB’s Network.

The KALAB Principles:

1. Access to health for All and Always – people and community-centered with solidarity, equality, cooperation, and "leaving no one behind."

2. Partnership for health: “neighbor for neighbor” support, with families and community involvement, active participation, partnership, transparency and listening followed by action. 

3. Community resilience – leadership, readiness, trust, and collectivity with strong community and local roots.

4. Intergenerational connection to communities beyond lines and borders—humanitarianism and protecting people, animals, plants, and the environment for future generations.

From its root, KALAB acts and assists in coordinating and supporting governmental and local authorities, defense forces, emergency organizations, health care providers, and public health services. It is guided and monitored through its affiliation with the Ben Gurion University of the Negev. 

KALAB’s building and maintenance:

When a community establishes its KALAB, it calls for volunteers to lead it. Once the leaders are identified, they become the community Health Cluster Leaders. They then send a message to community members inviting health professionals and other interested individuals to register for the KALAB. The registered volunteers are categorized based on their profession, expertise, capabilities, and addresses. Those interested in participating in lifesaving and life-support activities are invited to receive training from the Israel Emergency Medical Services, Magen David Adom (MDA). After completing the training and receiving validation from the KALAB and MDA teams, physicians, medics, nurses, or other volunteer candidates are enrolled. Validated teams are divided according to their neighborhoods and are provided with kits, defibrillators, and other necessary equipment.

KALAB members are essential in supporting vulnerable individuals and families in their community during emergencies. They will be responsible for identifying and contacting these individuals to meet their needs. Additionally, KALAB members will be tasked with assessing the risks in their surroundings, such as industrial and environmental hazards, and considering the accessibility of roads and transportation in their community. They must also be prepared to rescue and save lives in emergencies.

To prepare for potential emergencies, KALAB members will lead the development of a contingency plan that will use both all-hazards and hazard-specific approaches. This plan will be based on community-agreed priorities and undergo discussions and agreements with authorities. KALAB members will act as the community's voice by representing their needs and concerns to authorities and other intermediary bodies. They will also customize and adjust any guidelines received from authorities to ensure that they meet the specific needs of their community.

Concluding Words

Globally speaking, Community Protection, together with Universal health coverage (UHC), is a prerequisite for national and worldwide resilience. KALAB, a local network of health volunteers that works both with the authorities and interlocutors, is a significant example of an initiative employing Community Protection aimed at building and maintaining community resilience. KALAB is tailored to respond to community needs promptly while promoting mutual support and equal access to essential resources and services. It is vital to conduct research, monitor progress, and evaluate KALAB's impact and contribution to Community Protection while expanding its reach to different communities in Israel and beyond.

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Sid-Israel is the umbrella organisation of the Israeli professional community in Humanitarian Aid and International Development. It facilitates collaboration and knowledge exchange among NGOs, government bodies, academic institutions, private companies, consultants, and independent experts.

 ¹Fran H. Norris et al., “Community Resilience as a Metaphor, Theory, Set of Capacities, and Strategy for Disaster Readiness,” American Journal of Community Psychology 41, no. 1–2 (2008): 127–50, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10464-007-9156-6.

²“WHO. Strengthening health emergency prevention, preparedness, response and resilience. WHA 2023-21051248b.Pdf,” accessed February 3, 2024, https://cdn.who.int/media/docs/default-source/emergency-preparedness/who_hepr_wha2023-21051248b.pdf?sfvrsn=a82abdf4_3&download=true. 

³ Emily Ying Yang Chan et al., “Bottom-up Citizen Engagement for Health Emergency and Disaster Risk Management: Directions since COVID-19,” The Lancet 398, no. 10296 (July 2021): 194–96, https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(21)0123 3-2