In March 1979, when Reactor 2 partially melted down causing the first major nuclear power plant accident in the U.S., everyone was scared.
If you watched HBO’s Chernobyl, about the nuclear meltdown in the Soviet Union, or The China Syndrome, which actually came out just before TMI, you understand why.
People didn’t know what to do. Or how to respond. And as I recall, the media were not terribly helpful to my family’s decision-making.
At first, officials evacuated residents living within a five-mile radius, and then they extended it to a 10-mile evacuation zone.
This boundary seemed arbitrary. At 12 miles away, we wondered, were we safe with a two-mile buffer zone?
My parents were unclear what to do—evacuate or remain in place?
Here is where an unlikely source of information stepped in. Unbeknownst to me, my high school chemistry teacher had formerly taught nuclear chemistry at Penn State University. She understood what was happening, and she knew what to do.
Based on her explanation of what was happening at TMI and my relaying it to my parents, we knew what to look for, what steps to take if the situation got worse, and had the basis for making plans.
We stayed put. And it was the right decision.
No crisis is one-dimensional. Layers upon layers create complexity.
Because we’re all part of a system that is suffering tremendously in the face of two simultaneous events—coronavirus and financial loss—we each have a piece to contribute.
If you’re a mission driven organization, you may have the key to unlock solutions for a segment of our population. You may have information that we need.
We hope you’ll speak up. How many lives could you save or can you improve going forward.
In conversations with clients, addressing all sorts of issues they are facing in this challenging time, one wondered how she should be “tiptoeing” around the topic of fundraising right now. Afterall, she said, we’re not feeding the hungry or tending those stricken with Covid-19.
No, I told her, but she is serving her communities business leaders. And they need her organization’s guidance and connection now more than ever.
So, my questions for you this week are:
Do not shut down the wheels of your communications engine. Especially right now. If you’re on a mission, your mission needs to go on rain or shine.