New Platform, Zilient, Allows Individuals Working in the Global Resilience Field to Network and Share Knowledge Online
Platform Developed through a $5.5 Million Commitment by The Rockefeller Foundation, In Partnership with Thomson Reuters Foundation, Blue State Digital and OnFrontiers
Zilient Was Demonstrated Today at RES/CON: The Global Resilience Summit in New Orleans, Louisiana
NEW ORLEANS—At RES/CON: The Global Resilience Summit, today, The Rockefeller Foundation in collaboration with the Thomson Reuters Foundation, Blue State Digital and OnFrontiers, unveiled Zilient: a first-of-its-kind online publishing and knowledge-sharing platform for global resilience practitioners.
Zilient aims to provide two primary services: to connect individuals and teams working across the global resilience field, and to elevate high-quality content on resilience. To achieve these goals, Zilient hosts a number of features, including user profile pages and a searchable member database, as well as a global event directory of upcoming conferences, convenings, collaborative opportunities, and workshops. Zilient will publish dozens of new articles, stories and reports each week on how communities, cities, governments and other organizations are responding to and protecting themselves against some of the biggest social, economic and environmental challenges of our time. This will include expert coverage by Thomson Reuters Foundation journalists, pieces written by individual members of the Zilient community and information curated by Zilient from across the Internet. The platform will also send a weekly round-up email to all Zilient members. All news stories will be disseminated through the Reuters wire, with an estimated reach of one billion readers.
Zilient is an open community. Any interested individual, team or organization is welcome to join.
“Networks are critical to the future of resilience. As The Rockefeller Foundation has seen first-hand with our 100 Resilient Cities network, when resilience practitioners are able to connect, converse and share with each other, we have unlimited capacity to advance this field,” said Sam Carter, Managing Director at The Rockefeller Foundation. “That’s why we are thrilled to launch Zilient, the next phase of our efforts to grow the resilience field. By offering a new means for practitioners to build online bridges to their peers – even those who are on the other side of the world – we know that we will have an unprecedented ability to prepare our communities for the 21st century challenges ahead of us.”
“The Foundation has long been committed to dedicated coverage of the human impact of climate change and resilience issues with its team of journalists around the world,” said Monique Villa, CEO of the Thomson Reuters Foundation. “Zilient provides a vital platform for bringing to life stories from people who have found innovative ways to bullet-proof themselves against the disasters of the future, such as climate change, rapid urbanization, epidemics and conflict.”
“Through this platform, resilience has the opportunity to be far more than an abstract concept or academic framework – it will let people identify and connect; consume and suggest. It will make their work better, and It will begin the work of truly building this field,” said Matt Ipcar, Executive Creative Director of Blue State Digital.
“We’re incredibly excited to play a role in Zilient. Developing a network of experts that can advance the resilience field is well aligned with OnFrontiers mission. An important part of our value add is to cultivate a network that extends beyond the Rockefeller ‘choir’ and spans across sectors, geographies and the different roles members play in their organizations,” said Anne Kroijer, Co-Founder at OnFrontiers.
For more than a decade, The Rockefeller Foundation has championed and refined the study and practice of resilience, investing more than a half billion dollars – and leveraging billions more – in programs that help people, communities, and institutions around the world to address mounting physical, social, economic and climate issues. These initiatives include the Foundation’s 100 Resilient Cities network, a $168 million effort to help 100 cities around the world build resilience to thrive in the 21st-century. The program has also led to the creation of the Chief Resilience Officer position to direct resilience building from within local government.
With the rise of the field of resilience, the Foundation has heard directly from practitioners that they are increasingly seeking a means through which they can meet virtually and share knowledge to continue to advance the sector. This is why the Foundation has committed $5.5 million to this initiative, partnering with Blue State Digital and consulting with more than one thousand resilience practitioners to build Zilient – and to ensure that this platform most efficiently and effectively addresses their needs. The Foundation is also working with Thomson Reuters Foundation to provide content on resilience. OnFrontiers, a network developer, is cultivating and engaging the network of resilience experts and practitioners while building relationships with key Zilient community members
“Zilient fills an important need in the growing Resilience sector,” said Michael Hecht, President and CEO of GNO, Inc. “It provides a platform for RES/CON attendees to stay connected throughout the year, and beyond will provide a convenient way for companies in the business of resilience to promote and export their products across the country and world. We commend the Rockefeller Foundation for their leadership on this product and look forward to ensuring Zilient’s success.”
The first public demonstration of Zilient took place today at RES/CON. Earlier in the day, prior to the demonstration, Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards delivered a keynote address to introduce the unveiling of Zilient. The unveiling also featured a panel led by Megan Rowling, a correspondent with the Thomson Reuters Foundation and content editor for Zilient, on the value and impact of networks contributing to resilience around the globe.