Resilient communities build on local strengths to anticipate change, reduce the impact of major events, and come back from a blow stronger than ever. Here are seven ideas from cities and towns working to boost local resilience.
Our communities are constantly changing. Most changes are gradual and predictable—a new store opens on Main Street, newcomers come to town and priorities shift. But, sometimes change is abrupt, unexpected—a major natural disaster or an epidemic.
How can your city or town best prepare for unanticipated change? What will help your community respond to challenges not only to bounce back, but to become stronger than ever?
CommunityMatters offers seven ideas from cities and towns working to boost local resilience. Ideas range from simple, grassroots efforts like community gardens to more complex actions, including the creation of a local resilience task force.
FULL STORY: 7 Ways to Boost Your Community’s Resilience
Norfolk Plans for Resilience in the Face of Climate Change
The Ohio Creek Watershed Project aims to protect the city's coastline and prepare for future sea level rise.
Resilient Los Angeles: Preparing for Overlapping Disasters in Pandemic
L.A. City Chief Resilience Officer Aaron Gross elaborates on how the pandemic is shaping the city’s understanding of resilience and the cascading impact that overlapping disasters of earthquake or wildfire could have on the city’s limited resources.
More Detail on What Happened to 100 Resilient Cities
The Rockefeller Foundation has cited costs and a new strategic direction to explain why it abruptly cut off the program this year. While the work may live on in some form, the move underscores the risks of relying on private funding.
What ‘The Brutalist’ Teaches Us About Modern Cities
How architecture and urban landscapes reflect the trauma and dysfunction of the post-war experience.
‘Complete Streets’ Webpage Deleted in Federal Purge
Basic resources and information on building bike lanes and sidewalks, formerly housed on the government’s Complete Streets website, are now gone.
Montreal’s Gorilla Park Repurposes Defunct Railway Track
The park is part of a global movement to build public spaces that connect neighbors and work with local elements to serve as key parts of a city’s green infrastructure.
Massachusetts Gov. Makes Case for Road Funding Reforms
A package of proposed bills would change the state’s road funding formula to ensure more money flows to rural areas with limited resources.
Art in Action: USC Event Calls for an Urgent Green Energy Transition
The El Respiro / Respire event at USC uses a large-scale human geochoreography to demand an urgent and equitable transition to green energy, blending art, activism, and community engagement to amplify the message of climate justice.
Safe Parking Programs Help People Access Housing
The safety and stability offered by Safe Parking sites have helped 40 percent of unhoused San Diego residents who accessed these programs get into permanent housing.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority (NJTPA)
Economic & Planning Systems, Inc.
UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
City of Piedmont, CA
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research