Prepared but not a Prepper: Smart emergency planning & mutual aid practice

“I want to be prepared… but not a Prepper”

Forget the bunker, the go-bag, the doomscrolling. It’s time to confront uncertainty with preparation and community- not paranoia.

Real security—the kind that actually works when infrastructure fails, when storms hit, when systems break down—comes from strong communities, mutual aid networks, and neighbors who genuinely have each other's backs.

Join us monthly to learn practical emergency preparedness while building the community networks that actually keep people safe. We’re organizing this group to meet monthly to read about mutual aid best practices and make plans to organize our neighborhoods towards better connection and resilience. We will bring guest speakers from mutual aid networks, community organizers, urban farmers, tool library coordinators, and climate justice groups. We’ll encourage hands-on projects in your own neighborhood.

This learning community is for people who:

• Want to be proactive without being paranoid
• Recognize that "buying stuff" isn't the same as "being prepared"
• Understand that the biggest threats to our daily lives (climate change, economic instability, political violence, infrastructure failures) can't be solved by individuals alone
• Want to build real relationships with their neighbors, not just wave awkwardly from the porch
• Are tired of feeling helpless and want to channel that energy into something constructive
• Know that mutual aid and community care are more effective than isolated survivalism
• Want practical skills and realistic plans, not fear-mongering or conspiracy theories

What we'll do together:

Over twelve months, we'll learn practical skills for emergency preparedness while building the relationships and systems that make everyone safer. We'll read books that describe how communities actually respond to crisis. We'll hear from guest speakers who run mutual aid organizations, coordinate emergency response, and organize neighborhood-level resilience projects.

But more importantly, we'll actually do things. Not just talk about preparedness—we'll create scenario plans for our specific neighborhoods. We'll map our community assets and vulnerabilities. We'll set up neighborhood Signal groups so we can actually communicate when the power's out. We'll organize skill shares so you know which neighbor can fix a furnace and which one knows first aid. We'll create the systems and relationships that turn a collection of strangers into a neighborhood that can weather a storm together.

This is preparedness rooted in solidarity, not fear.

The first kick off meeting will take place online on January 9, 2026.

This is a Big Hope Project Learning Series. For more information about the Big Hope Project and our learning series check us out at, https://www.curiousshapes.org/bighope and follow us on instagram and tiktok at @withbighope