Understanding the PolyCrisis

Across sub-Saharan Africa, many communities face what leaders in Gaborone described as a polycrisis, a situation where several crises happen at the same time, each making the other worse. This term means more than just one problem. It speaks of multiple challenges, social, economic, political, and environmental, all piling on top of each other and overwhelming communities, churches, and leaders.

For example, the leaders in Gaborone reflected on the real pressures facing their communities:

• Economic hardship due to rising unemployment and lack of opportunities
• Prolonged drought affecting food and water security
• Political instability causing fear and uncertainty

Each of these, on their own, is a serious challenge. But when they happen together, they create a situation where it feels almost impossible to know where to begin responding. As one leader put it, “You push against one thing, but the other two are pulling you back.”

Why the Church is Important in a Polycrisis

In the Gaborone session, participants agreed that the Church often stands at the centre of these crises, not just as a spiritual refuge but as a place people expect leadership, hope, and even practical help. The Church is often the most trusted institution left when government systems are weak or absent.

However, the leaders also recognised that churches themselves are not immune to these pressures. When a polycrisis hits, church leaders face hard decisions:

• Who do we help first when everyone is suffering?
• How do we speak hope when our own leaders feel hopeless?
• What happens when we are also affected and lack resources?

One reflection from Gaborone captured this well: “Resilience, for us, means standing firm against all odds. But what if the odds just keep getting worse?”

The Role of Resilience and Leadership

The Gaborone session defined resilience as the capacity to persevere in the face of adversity. In the face of overlapping crises, resilience is not simply survival but the ability to keep leading, to keep the community together, and to find small ways to respond.

Key insights from Gaborone included:

• Leadership in a polycrisis must be about listening before acting. Leaders who rushed in often missed what the community really needed.
• Some communities found strength by creating unity; they focused less on what divided them and more on what they shared: survival, faith, and community support.
• “We learned that waiting for government or donors is a trap. We must start with what we have.”

This points to an important leadership challenge: How can churches and leaders stay grounded, wise, and action-focused when the problems feel too big?

Personal Reflection Guidelines

Now it is your turn to reflect on your own experience of facing multiple challenges as a leader or community member. This is not a test, and there are no right or wrong answers. The goal is to help you see your own leadership journey more clearly.

Consider the following example from Gaborone:

"One church shared how, in one year, they faced drought, political unrest, and rising food prices. People came to the church daily—some needing prayer, others needing food, and many needing answers. The leaders felt paralysed. Where do you even start when everything is urgent?"

Reflection Instructions:

Please take time to think deeply about a moment in your leadership or community where you felt surrounded by multiple crises or problems. These could be big or small, but they happened together, making it hard to lead.

Write a short reflection (300–400 words) covering:

• What were the overlapping crises or challenges?
• How did this situation affect you personally as a leader or community member?
• What was your first reaction? Did you act, or did you feel stuck?
• Looking back, what do you wish you or your church had done differently?
• What did you learn about resilience or leadership from that experience?

Writing Guidelines:

• Write honestly, from your own experience.
• You do not need to use formal or academic language. Imagine you are writing a letter to another leader like yourself.
• Focus on your feelings, thoughts, and actions, not just what happened.
• Keep this reflection safe. You will use it in your final Leadership Reflection & Action Plan.

Final Thought for this Session:

Leadership in a polycrisis is heavy work. But reflection helps us learn where we are strong and where we must grow. The next session will help us explore how sometimes it is not the disaster itself, but our human response, that makes the crisis worse.