For a national competition supported by the New Zealand Board of
Geography Teachers, secondary school students in years 10–13 were asked to
identify and investigate factors that were building community resilience in their
home areas, and the entries provided young people’s perspectives on how well
individuals, families and communities ‘bounce back’, adapt, change and become
stronger following an adverse event. This article concerns the findings of students
at Greymouth High School. Their entries showed that community resilience in Grey
District depended on individual and collective capacity for action. The greater their
involvement in community affairs and projects, the more likely individuals and
families were to form networks and participate in communal activities. In
Greymouth, as elsewhere in New Zealand, membership of voluntary organisations
and participation in planning for, and responding to, catastrophic events has helped
residents respond effectively in times of adversity and has enhanced community
resilience
