Energy insecurity has been recognized as a global social and public health challenge. Availability of and accessibility to energy infrastructure is a core element of community resilience—a concept that characterizes a community’s ability to promote health and well-being, and to cope with and recover from adversity. We conducted a quantitative survey in order to explore the interplay between these two experiences among residents of two types of Bedouin communities in Southern Israel: townships and informal settlements, which differ in their accessibility to energy infrastructure. We report a significant negative association between experiences of energy insecurity and perceived community resilience, especially with regard to trust in leadership and emergency preparedness. This indicates that energy insecurity is not only a personal or a household burden, but rather an issue that has broader communal and social aspects (and consequences) –one that should be tackled at the local and municipal levels. Our study deepens the current understanding of the processes and factors that may promote or impede community resilience and health by establishing a clear link between place-related physical and perceptual resources.

能源不安全已被公认为全球社会和公共卫生挑战。能源基础设施的可用性和可及性是社区复原力的核心要素——这一概念表征了社区促进健康和福祉以及应对逆境和从逆境中恢复的能力。我们进行了一项定量调查，以探讨以色列南部两类贝都因社区居民的这两种体验之间的相互作用：城镇和非正式定居点，它们在能源基础设施的可及性方面存在差异。我们报告说，能源不安全的经历与感知到的社区弹性之间存在显着的负面关联，尤其是在对领导力和应急准备的信任方面。这表明能源不安全不仅是个人或家庭的负担，而且是一个具有更广泛社区和社会方面（和后果）的问题——应该在地方和市政层面加以解决。我们的研究通过在与地点相关的物理资源和感知资源之间建立明确的联系，加深了当前对可能促进或阻碍社区恢复力和健康的过程和因素的理解。