WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?
Civic infrastructure is an indirect measurement of community engagement. Community engagement increases the resiliency of a community or region through the development of community networks which result in positive benefits to individuals, families, and the community as a whole. Community networks provide education, awareness, support systems, and a means for residents to act as stewards of their community through investment and opportunities for collaborative action. [i]Civic infrastructure includes civic, professional, voluntary health, social advocacy, social, and professional organizations, labor unions, and political groups. Religious and grant-making organizations are not included in this measurement of civic infrastructure.[ii]
[i] Heinz Center. “Human Links to Coastal Disasters,” The H. John Heinz III Center for Science, Economics and the Environment (2000).
[ii] Institute of Government Studies, Resilience Capacity Index, The University of California Berkeley. http://brr.berkeley.edu/rci/site/sources