Resiliency as a concept is not new.

The Rockefeller Foundation has been a leading voice in resilience over the last five years and has a compelling articulation on its website: “Resilience is the capacity of individuals, communities, and systems to survive, adapt, and grow in the face of stress and shocks, and even transform when conditions require it.”

But never before has resiliency in the context of health systems been more salient, given the rise of emerging pandemic threats and growing worldwide instability.

We are excited about finding new ways to solve age-old problems.

There is much we don’t know about how to ensure health systems are resilient. Of course, resilient health systems require, among other things, strong governance, a capable workforce, the ability to access real-time information about how the system is performing, and multisectoral action.

But what else is essential?What are the best investments the global health community can make to ensure that health systems and health workers can withstand the next disruption? We believe that communities can play a greater role in building resilient health systems, but how? And how can new technologies, innovative partnerships, and accountability mechanisms facilitate greater community engagement in building resilient health systems?These are the questions that IntraHealth International and other global health organizations are interested in tackling. And we are doing that by helping design a unique gathering called Cracking the Nut Health.

Cracking the Nut is a learning event created six years ago by consulting firm Connexus Corporation to help solve the complex challenges within rural and agricultural development. This year, Connexus formed an advisory group of global health experts to launch its first-ever health-focused event, entitled: Cracking the Nut: The Role of Communities in Building Resilient Health Systems.

The conference takes place July 18-19, 2016, in Washington, DC, and will convene up to 300 global health thought leaders and implementers who are interested in exploring how communities can contribute to building resilient health systems. The conference is highly participatory and designed to be a collaborative learning space with open dialogue and free sharing of diverse perspectives among presenters and participants alike. A conference publication will highlight the key lessons from the deliberations and synthesize information gaps that require further exploration and investment.

We know that solutions can come from the most unusual places.

We at IntraHealth are excited about finding new ways to solve age-old problems. We know that solutions can come from the most unusual places and are more robust when generated from the wisdom of many. That’s why we are sponsoring Cracking the Nut Health—and why we created Switchpoint, our own annual conference that brings together experts in humanitarian innovation, global health, and technology for greater global good.

If you are interested in health systems resiliency, community health, or both—or if you have experiences, methodologies, and strategies you think are relevant—I encourage you to attend Cracking the Nut Health. You will be able to share your ideas, network, build partnerships, gain new insights and technical capacities—and, we hope, contribute to collectively cracking the health systems resiliency nut.

Don't miss out on this important learning event. Register today.