Large city:
Hybrid attack
Items already in place: Metro station, main square, church
Possible items to add: School, daycare, bouldering hall, library, bar, concert venue, gas station, shopping centre, hospital, police station
Crisis: Hybrid attack involving severe disturbances in supply lines and severe disturbances in all digital systems.
Step 1 - Start
Facilitator instructs: Choose 5 items (group decision) to create your ideal resilient small town community (list items above for inspiration).
(Time: 5 min.)
Step 2 - Crisis
Facilitator reads: All digital systems suddenly stop working—mobile networks, payment systems, public transport ticketing, and government websites. No one knows how long it will last. You suspect a hybrid attack, because there have already been severe disturbances in supply chains (affecting supply of food, gas, medicine) and the social media is filled with rumours. It’s impossible to know what is going on.
First task
Facilitator reads: You decide to go out to find a reliable source of information to find out the cause of the systemic breakdown and what is being done to fix it. Discuss: Where do you go to look for reliable local information? Who do you want to talk with? You can only choose the buildings that you chose in Step 1. (Discuss as a group but possible to make individual decisions). Move your characters to this location.
(Time: 10 min.)
Second task
Facilitator reads: You find out that it will take at least 48 hours to fix the system, and that there are some supplies distributed by the city, but the people you talked with don’t know where. Discuss: Where do you go to seek for possible supply deliveries? If the supplies have not yet arrived, do you feel safe waiting here for some hours or should you go to a third place in the meantime? (Discuss as a group but possible to make individual decisions). Move your character to this location.
(Time: 5 min.)
Third task (optional)
Facilitator reads: You find some supplies for yourself, but during your rounds, you have heard that several elderly people are unable to get the food supplies they need delivered to them. You want to help but cannot do it by yourself—you need help organising people to do this task or alert a proper public official about the problem. Who do you want to talk to and where do you go?
(Time: 5 min.)
Step 3 - Rebuilding stage
Facilitator reads: The digital systems have been fixed! However, the city is concerned by the speed that rumours and misinformation spread and wished to make an investment to support stronger neighbourhoods to make them more resilient should this happen again. This funding allows you to invest in one more infrastructure item. Looking back at your experiences during the digital systems crisis, what should you add to the city?
(Time: 5 min.)
Step 4 - Final thoughts
Facilitator reads: Prepare to tell the learnings from your community to the moderator (one group member represents the group). Think about the following questions as a group: Why did you chose the locations that you did? Was it easy or difficult to make the choices? Who seemed like someone you can trust in the situation you were in? Did you feel like it would be possible to find them? Think about your real-life community: do you think you would make similar choices in the same situation there?
(Time: 10 min.)
Step 5 - Discussion round
The table attends final discussion round with other tables to compare processes. This step can also be done with a moderator.
