This text is part of the special Social Work section
Vulnerable populations are the most affected by the consequences of climate change. “It concerns us all, it’s not just the State’s business,” underlines Lucie Morin, community organizer at the CISSS de Chaudière-Appalaches. And social workers are well placed to make their contribution.
“Social work involves several methods; individual intervention is the best known, but there is also group intervention and collective intervention,” explains André-Anne Parent, professor of social work at the University of Montreal. These collective interventions act at local scales (district, city, region) and aim to improve the living conditions of populations by creating healthy living environments.
“Collective intervention works upstream on collective issues in the broad sense,” continues Suzie Cloutier, community organizer at the CIUSSS de la Capitale-Nationale for 15 years and president of the Regroupement québécois des interveners en action community en CISSS et CIUSSS ( RQIIAC). Within the framework of the Estates General, the RQIIAC would also like to recognize “the relevance and importance of paying attention to collective actions in parallel with individual actions”, confides Mme Cloutier.
“An accumulation of risks”
The question of social justice is at the heart of these interventions. And it is impossible to talk about social justice without considering the ecological transition, given the obvious consequences of climate change on vulnerable populations. “The people most affected by the effects of climate change are the same as those who are already disadvantaged on different levels,” recalls M.me Cloutier.
And if the wealthiest have the means to protect their land or change neighborhoods in the event of flooding, for example, the less fortunate will suffer more of the consequences of climatic events. “It’s an accumulation of risks,” observes Mme Parent.
However, the same intervention can reduce social and environmental inequalities. “The idea is not to do more, but to do it differently. […] Everything is interconnected: people do not have to become environmental actors to have an effect on environmental issues,” notes Lucie Morin. With Professor Parent, Mme Morin — who is also a doctoral student in social work — is involved in a research project led by social work professor Denis Bourque, who is also one of the three commissioners responsible for overseeing the consultations of the Estates General. “We are studying eight consultation tables which aim to reduce poverty and we are trying to see how they integrate solutions for the ecological transition,” explains M.me Parent.
A collective garden project, for example, improves food security by providing access to quality food at low cost and promotes socialization and solidarity, while greening the neighborhood. This addition of nature has several benefits: reduction of heat islands, air filtration, absorption of rainwater, etc. “Our impact will be increased tenfold if we think in an integrated way, by acting on several determinants at the same time,” summarizes André-Anne Parent.
The strength of the collective
To deal with climate change, individual actions will not be enough. “Collective intervention brings people together, mobilizes them and works on common problems to find a collective solution,” describes Mme Parent. The collective approach makes it possible, as she points out, to “mobilize to create a resilient environment to face extreme climate events”.
Community intervention also starts from people’s needs and feedback from the field to build solutions according to them. Community organizations initiate discussions with communities, ideally in advance of climate consequences. “We are privileged witnesses to the functioning and dysfunction of society. Social workers can act to ensure healthy and equitable environments,” believes Lucie Morin.
“COVID has shown us the importance of having groups of people who relay in the communities to transmit information and know how things are going in the neighborhood, the community,” says Suzie Cloutier. Indeed, despite the unique message of Public Health, it did not reach all clienteles. The role of community organizers is therefore to make the connection and act as a popularizer or translator.
“We also need to question representations and stories,” adds M.me Parent. Because if everyone can do their part, we must go beyond. “These are aspects that are beyond us, especially if it is accompanied by personal and economic problems. We must not make people feel guilty,” notes Mme Cloutier. “Collective intervention allows us to overcome powerlessness and work on areas of power,” she concludes.
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