Climate change affects us all, but that doesn’t mean we feel its effects equally. In a decisive move last month, Marin County supervisors renewed funding for the West Marin Community Resiliency Team, a program aimed at enhancing public health and disaster preparedness on the coast.
The initiative, led by West Marin Community Services and the San Geronimo Valley Community Center, is part of a broader countywide effort to provide ongoing resources and improve access to a network of support, particularly in areas with low scores on the California Healthy Places Index. The teams operate in four regions—West Marin, Northern Marin, Southern Marin and San Rafael’s Canal neighborhood.
Running such a program in West Marin requires a unique approach compared to the county’s other regions, according to the team’s leaders.
“West Marin exhibits a strong resistance to establishment authorities such as the county government,” said Elizabeth Max, director of programs for West Marin Community Services. “I think that sort of skepticism and hesitation to trust official messaging is common among vulnerable and marginalized communities. So the role of trusted messengers becomes crucial, and it is one of the pillars that carries the West Marin C.R.T.”
Not only are resilience teams more likely to be trusted than government-led emergency services, but they also offer a more practical approach to health care and disaster preparedness. This includes opioid overdose prevention, blood drives, health fairs, lifesaving skills classes and disaster preparedness.
Interagency partnerships are a core component of the C.R.T. model, connecting community members with organizations they know and trust. The West Marin C.R.T. collaborates with local disaster councils, KWMR Radio, Firesafe Marin, the Marin Wildfire Prevention Authority and other organizations.
Originally established during the pandemic as the West Marin Community Response Team, the program was initially funded by the CARES Act. The team was created to address gaps in public health care infrastructure by providing rental assistance and onsite Covid-19 testing and vaccination.
As the immediate threat of the pandemic subsided, the C.R.T.s recognized the need to address broader issues, including weather-related hazards and longstanding inequities, said Socorro Romo, executive director of W.M.C.S. The team shifted focus, collaborating with residents to develop sustainable programs.
“As we move into this new grant, the scope of our work is shifting to emphasize disaster preparedness, addressing the impacts of climate change, and overdose prevention through our Narcan distribution efforts,” said Michele McCourtney, director of operations at the San Geronimo Valley Community Center.
County supervisors allocated $150,000 per fiscal year for the next three years to W.M.C.S. for facilitating the team, which has developed a system of hubs in Point Reyes Station, Olema, Muir Beach, Bolinas, San Geronimo Valley, Inverness, Tomales and Nicasio.
“We have partners throughout those areas who are integral members of the C.R.T. network, collaborating closely with us every other week for the past three years,” said Alexa Davidson, executive director of the S.G.V.C.C.
By engaging neighborhood liaisons and promotores—trusted individuals within the Latino community who live on the ranches—the C.R.T. overcomes access barriers. “We provide essential resources and services to them, and they, in turn, distribute these resources within their communities, leveraging the strong relationships of trust they have already built,” Ms. Davidson said.