Living with “Slow Disaster”: Collective Efficacy, Local Wisdom, and Community Resilience in Post‐ Tsunami Aceh

Over the past five decades, Aceh, Indonesia, has faced a series of prolonged crises—a 30‐year armed conflict (1974–2005), the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, the COVID‐19 pandemic (2019–2021), and ongoing climate change. These “slow disasters” compound over time, reshaping communities through sustained strain rather than a single, isolated shock. Drawing on mixed methods—household surveys (n = 400) in four disaster‐affected villages—we examine how collective efficacy (the shared belief in a group’s capacity to act) and related protective factors foster community resilience. Our analysis underscores that collective efficacy, local wisdom, and community coping self‐efficacy significantly predict communal adaptability, whereas individual traits like cognitive flexibility and personal resilience play lesser roles. Findings highlight the urgent need for disaster management strategies that acknowledge prolonged, overlapping crises, centering on communal cohesion, culturally anchored practices, and continuous support for vulnerable groups.