Resilient Citizens

Blending battlefield experience, cutting-edge disaster research, and real-world stories of ranchers, homesteaders, and policymakers, Resilient Citizens is a gripping and essential guide for anyone ready to stop hoping and start preparing in an age of polycrisis and cascading collapse.

Resilience is a mindset.

From war zones to wildfires, pandemics to power outages, the threats we face today seem bigger, scarier, and more unrelenting than ever before. Why, then, does society take a critical view of those who prepare for the worst while hoping for the best? Why do so many people write them off as crazy, conspiracy-minded “doomsday preppers”?

In Resilient Citizens, Army officer and disaster expert Dr. Chris Ellis challenges the myths, dismisses the fearmongering, and takes a much-needed, long-overdue scholarly look not just at prepper culture in America, but our overall social, physical, intellectual, emotional, and spiritual health.

This isn’t another doomsday prepper guide or government-endorsed emergency brochure. It’s a deep dive into the people, perils, and politics of preparedness—from ranchers in the Rockies to policymakers globally—and a call to action for those who refuse to outsource their safety to luck or bureaucracy.

Unpacking thousands of hours of research, Dr. Ellis will help you—

Learn the traits and strategies of those best equipped to survive and thrive amid disaster. Understand the psychological roadblocks that keep people stuck in denial or helplessness. Discover how different belief systems, subcultures, and nations approach long-term resilience. Debunk popular myths about “preppers” and discover the truth behind America’s growing culture of preparedness. Examine the historical and political roots of America’s preparedness paradox. Reveal the number one resilience item every household must own.

Whether you’re a concerned parent, a curious skeptic, or a seasoned survivalist, Resilient Citizens will challenge your assumptions and inspire you to think bigger, prepare smarter, and ensure your own survival in a chaotic world and uncertain future.