A Tale of Two Suburbs: Earthquake Recovery and Civil Society in Christchurch, New Zealand

This study followed two similarly affected, but socio-economically disparate suburbs as residents recovered from the devastating 6.3 magnitude earthquake that struck Christchurch, New Zealand, on February 22, 2011. More specifically, it focuses on the role of local churches, community-based organisations (CBOs) and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), here referred to broadly as civil society, in meeting the immediate needs of local residents and assisting with the longer-term recovery of each neighbourhood.  Analysis of sixteen qualitative interviews with residents as well as key informants from local civil society in each suburb found that despite considerable socioeconomic differences, civil society in both suburbs has been vital in addressing the needs of locals in the short and long term following the earthquake. Institutions were able to utilise local knowledge of residents and damage in the area to a) provide a swifter local response than government or civil defence and then help direct the relief these agencies provided locally; b) set up central points for distribution of supplies and information where locals would naturally gather; c) take action on what were perceived to be unmet needs; and d) act as a way of bridging locals to a variety of valuable resources. However, the findings also support literature which indicates that other factors are also important in understanding neighbourhood recovery and the role of civil society, including: local leadership, a shared, place-based identity, the type and form of civil society, social capital, and neighbourhood- and household-level indicators of relative vulnerability and inequality. The intertwining of these various factors has influenced how these neighbourhoods have coped with and taken steps in recovering from this disaster.  It is suggested that a model that takes a multi-factoral approach in understanding community vulnerability and capacity within the Christchurch context be designed to more effectively explore further research in this area.