Building Resilient, Inclusive Communities Through Shared Storytelling (BRICS) is an innovative community engagement project developed by the National Centre for Resilience (NCR) in partnership with the University of Glasgow and For Enjoyment CIC. The project explored how creative practice can help people better understand natural hazards, climate adaptation and community resilience through reflection, storytelling and shared learning.
Inspired by the creative challenge format of Inktober, BRICS invited participants to take part in a month-long online programme of daily creative prompts centred around preparedness, recovery, environmental change and collective resilience. Open to everyone regardless of artistic ability or prior knowledge of resilience, the project demonstrated how creativity can become a powerful tool for building confidence, connection and understanding before emergencies happen.
Why creative engagement matters
Building resilient communities requires more than emergency plans and technical information. It depends on people understanding local risks, feeling confident to take action and having opportunities to learn from one another.
BRICS was designed to test whether creative engagement could complement traditional resilience activities by creating accessible, inclusive spaces where people could explore complex issues in their own way. Through art, poetry, discussion and storytelling, participants reflected on resilience from the perspective of their own experiences and communities, helping to make abstract concepts more meaningful and memorable.
The project demonstrates that creativity is not just a way of communicating resilience messaging, but it actively support resilience building by encouraging dialogue, strengthening social connections and supporting shared understanding across communities.
Project Highlights
During the month-long challenge, participants:
- Responded to 28 daily creative prompts exploring resilience and environmental change.
- Shared artwork, poetry, photography, textiles and other creative responses.
- Learned alongside people from six countries, bringing together lived experience, professional expertise and diverse cultural perspectives.
- Took part in a supportive online community that encouraged reflection, discussion and peer learning rather than formal teaching.
Our Learnings
The BRICS project provides valuable evidence that creative, participatory approaches can strengthen community resilience by making conversations about risk, preparedness and recovery more accessible and inclusive.
The project found that creative engagement can:
- Increase awareness of natural hazards and climate resilience.
- Build confidence in discussing complex issues.
- Strengthen social connections and peer support.
- Encourage meaningful conversations about preparedness before emergencies occur.
- Demonstrate the value of arts-based approaches within resilience and emergency planning.
Importantly, participants were not just given information; they developed their own understanding through creative practice, shared reflection and conversation, creating a deeper sense of ownership and engagement with the concepts of community resilience.
The Building Resilient, Inclusive Communities Through Shared Storytelling (BRICS) case study explores the project’s design, delivery and impact in detail, demonstrating how creative engagement can support climate adaptation, community resilience and public participation.
Download the full report to learn more about the project and how shared creativity can help communities build resilience before severe events occur.
