Our Community: Safe and Secure

Numerous studies have shown that personal health, behaviors, and lifestyles are closely linked to the supportive environments of neighborhoods. This review aimed to examine two aspects: the impact of neighborhood environments on health and the underlying mechanisms. The findings indicated that living environments played a crucial role in shaping individuals' health and lifestyle choices. However, due to the unequal distribution of power and resources, communities varied in terms of physical environments, social capital, and risk factors, leading to disparities in health outcomes. As a result, we propose that efforts to create healthy communities should shift from individual-level interventions, such as behavior change and healthcare services, to community-level interventions, such as building supportive physical environments, social structures, and cultural norms.

陳淑媚等（2023）。社會鄰里環境對健康的影響:文獻回顧。https://www.hpa.gov.tw/File/Attach/923/%E7%A4%BE%E5%8D%80%E9%84%B0%E9%87%8C%E7%92%B0%E5%A2%83%E5%B0%8D%E5%81%A5%E5%BA%B7%E7%9A%84%E5%BD%B1%E9%9F%BF%EF%BC%9A%E6%96%87%E7%8D%BB%E5%9B%9E%E9%A1%A7.pdf

In today's world, our social environment has become increasingly complex, marked by events such as the 9/11 attacks and the SARS outbreak that have left people worldwide yearning for greater security amidst uncertainty and risk. Since the 9/11 tragedy, security management has gained importance in the United States, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan. The SARS epidemic in 2003 prompted governments to recognize the influence of communities and to explore ways of combining independent and autonomous community culture with centralized systems to promote community security and welfare. The World Health Organization's international Safe Community certification aims to encourage communities to spontaneously undertake safety promotion plans to improve human and environmental safety, prevent injuries, violence, suicide, and natural disasters.

This study done by Lin (2013) employs literature analysis and in-depth interviews to analyze the Safe Community concept and practice, investigate community development and Safe Community certification in Touchen town from a security management perspective, and draw the following conclusions: (1) Community injury surveillance contributes to an effective safety promotion program. (2) Good interpersonal relationships are key to integrating resources in Touchen's Safe Community. (3) Busy routine work can lead public servants with promotion enthusiasm to pass the buck. (4) The eight factors for successful certification provide an excellent model for promoting Safe Communities. (5) Organizations with sound management will overcome challenges and difficulties and have a better future prospect. (6) Professional evaluation of Safe Communities is crucial from a community security management perspective.

林秀琴（2013）。從安全管理觀點探討安全社區之營造與認證-以宜蘭縣頭城鎮為例。﹝碩士論文。佛光大學﹞臺灣博碩士論文知識加值系統。 https://hdl.handle.net/11296/95v749。

In recent years, there has been a growing recognition of the positive relationship between social capital and civil society. Social capital refers to the institutions, relationships, and norms that shape the quality and quantity of social interactions in a society. Increasing evidence suggests that social cohesion is crucial for sustainable development and economic prosperity. Social capital is not just a collection of institutions; it is the connective tissue that binds them together. The quantity, quality, and persistence of social interactions among neighbors, friends, and members of groups and associations generate social capital and the ability to work together for the common good.

This study introduces and illustrates the concept of social capital and describes its forms. Social capital can have a positive impact on the well-being and prosperity of entire communities, not just households with high levels of social capital. However, communities do not exist in a vacuum; a country's political and cultural factors and the global economic environment can influence the development and sustainability of social capital at the community level.

Social capital is characterized as embedded and autonomous social relations. The use of the terms "embeddedness" and "autonomy" differs at the micro and macro levels. Embeddedness at the micro level refers to intra-community ties, while at the macro level, it refers to state-society relations. Autonomy at the micro level refers to extra-community networks, while at the macro level, it refers to institutional capacity and credibility. This study attempts to integrate social capital development at the micro and macro levels through an initial examination of the propositions advanced by the meso level, which refers to groups, communities, and civil society.

李宗勳（2002）。社會資本與社區安全之初探。中國行政評論，11(3)，1-44。https://doi.org/10.6635/cpar.2002.11(3).01