WCK & Archewell Foundation Share Update on First Community Relief Center in Dominica
WCK, in its joint philanthropic partnership with The Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s nonprofit Archewell Foundation, is developing a series of four Community Relief Centers in regions of the world prone to climate disasters.
Announced late last year, the intent of these Centers is to provide both relief and resilience – as well as healing and strength – for the communities in which they’re based. In times of crisis, they can be quickly activated as emergency response kitchens, and through calmer times they can serve as food distribution hubs, schools, clinics, or community gathering spaces for families.
We are excited to share an update that construction on the first of the four Centers in the Caribbean Commonwealth nation of Dominica is complete. We are working with local nonprofit RezDM – the Resilient Dominica Project, funded by The Daniel Langlois Foundation and managed by Simon Walsh – and the Ministry of Education to bring the project to life.
Dominica, a beautiful volcanic island in the Windward Islands of the Lesser Antilles, has been severely impacted by hurricanes over the last half decade. In 2015, Hurricane Erika destroyed hundreds of homes and caused extensive damage, followed in 2017 by the back-to-back horrors of Hurricane Irma and Hurricane Maria, the latter of which brought 160mph winds and destroyed over 90% of the island’s infrastructure.
As a result of these crippling disasters, Dominica made a vow to become the world’s first climate resilient nation. Our work, which is driven by a commitment to climate resilience, is perfectly suited for supporting the island’s ambitious goals.
Members of WCK’s Relief Team oversaw the delivery and installment of new equipment to get this Community Relief Center ready to open. The Center is in RezDM’s new Soufriere Primary School site, which was constructed under Dominica’s climate resiliency plan to be a safe shelter against future hurricanes.
The kitchen equipment – including refrigerators and freezers that can work entirely off the electrical grid using solar power – is now installed and ready for the school’s staff to cook for students and the community, and we will be launching a culinary training program later in the year. These trainings, based on Sink To Stove and our upcoming Chef Relief Training program, will equip chefs with the skills necessary to cook for the community and even feed large numbers of people in an emergency. From this Community Relief Center, we anticipate being able to prepare thousands of meals per day in the direct aftermath of any future storm.
