First 'Chief Resilience Officer' Begins Term in Oakland

According to Will Doig of Next City, the, city of Oakland, in conjunction with The Rockefeller Foundation’s 100 Resilient Cities, created the position to be filled by Victoria Salinas. Salinas has previously worked with The World Bank on their Disaster Management Team, as well as FEMA, the State Department, and the United Nations Development Programme.

Salinas has her hands full, as she will "lead the city’s efforts to prepare for and respond to a number of challenges, from executing earthquake retrofits for 24,000 at-risk multi-family housing units to developing long-term strategies for protecting the city from sea-level rise and intensifying storms. She will also implement Oakland’s Energy and Climate Action Plan, which was adopted by the city council in December 2012."

The CRO position has now been created in a number of cities like Christchurch, New Zealand; Boulder, Colorado; Dakar, Senegal; Norfolk, Virginia; and Medellin, Colombia. One of the key benefits of this position throughout the globe is knowledge-sharing and collaborative ideation. As Doig writes, "the CROs of Medellin and San Francisco have been discussing ways to deal with seismic threats," a conversation which previously would not have existed.

If your city is interested in joining the 100 Resilient Cities initiative, there is still time! So far only 32 cities have been chosen, and applications for the next round are now available, due September 10.