Aza Gadsden, presenter with the Bonner County Civil Defense Resilience Team, told a community meeting that individuals and local governments should plan for “systemic” financial disruptions that can shut banks, close shops and break supply chains.

Gadsden, who described two decades in global finance, said the difference between idiosyncratic risks (problems affecting one person or business) and systemic risks (events that affect everyone at once) requires different preparation. “When the poop hits the fan,” he said, “you can’t prepare for a systemic event the way you prepare for an individual event.”

The presentation centered on how monetary and distribution networks can stop functioning in a systemic crisis — examples Gadsden cited included the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks and the COVID-19 pandemic — and what individuals and communities can do to remain resilient.

Gadsden recounted arriving at banks on Sept. 11, 2001, when automated systems were down and tellers had limited cash. He said those personal experiences, combined with his banking career, informed his advice that standard tools such as insurance and short-term bank savings may not protect people in a broad system failure. “When we deposit our money into a bank … you actually do become a creditor to the bank,” he told the audience, adding that in a systemic failure depositors can lose access to funds even when accounts exist.

Gadsden recommended preparing for how local exchange networks will re-form if national systems falter. He said barter is inefficient and that emergent markets typically adopt a new medium of exchange; historically that has often been precious metals. “There is a significant probability,” he said, “that in the event of a serious systemic risk event … a new money network will be gold and silver.” He explained practical details attendees should consider, such as the difference between pre‑1965 U.S. “junk” silver coins and modern mint products and the tools dealers use to verify metal content.

Audience members asked about specific local or government steps. An audience member asked whether Bonner County is preparing to support alternative money systems or local trade networks; Gadsden said counties typically do not create those markets but can pass laws or make other adjustments that ease their emergence. He noted recent Idaho legislation (referred to in the meeting as HO177) that the presenter said enables private contracts using gold and silver to be upheld by state courts, and he named State Rep. Phil Hart as a legislator supporting such steps.

During a question-and-answer exchange, residents raised practical points about dividing savings among institutions, storing physical precious metals, verifying authenticity and what to do for smaller transactions if large bullion is held. Gadsden emphasized the difference between short-term “time-bridge” measures such as stored food and cash and the longer-term importance of local production skills and the ability to participate in emergent markets. “It’s not what you’ve got, it’s what you can contribute,” he said.

The session included discussion but no formal county action. Organizers encouraged attendees to raise questions at county commission meetings if they want Bonner County officials to consider policy steps to support local resilience.

Ending: The presentation closed with an invitation to practice skills and build local networks; the meeting ended without votes or formal directives.