The Resilient Nation Roundup | February 2021

FEBRUARY 2021

The Resilient Nation Partnership Network team would like to continue our conversations around advancing equitable resilience.

This month, we would like to highlight the community of Evanston, Illinois. Evanston is promoting change at the local level through their Climate Resilient Communities Series. They have committed to ensuring that the series is accessible, community-based and collaborative. Evanston is advancing these conversations by bringing together diverse audiences sharing a common goal of creating a more resilient community. They are tackling the complex and important issues found at the intersection of resilience and equity.

So, what can we learn from them? Actionable change starts at the community level and needs to be accessible. The Evanston Public Library hosted the series, providing an accessible and trusted venue and convener for these conversations. They also varied the time of day, format and topic to increase the community’s ability to participate and relate to their interest. Additionally, the Public Library relied on local leaders to drive the dialogue and connect the topics to local efforts.

Read more about their efforts in the partner news below and learn how you can adopt those same efforts in your community.

Let’s continue to explore the many ways we can all work together to create a more equitable and resilient nation in 2021 and beyond.

Stay safe and be well,
The Resilient Nation Partnership Network Team

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Partner News


Evanston, Illinois Public Library Hosts Climate Resilient Communities Series

The Climate Resilient Communities Series of presentations, film discussions, community conversations and hands-on learning kits will focus on climate change and its causes and effects. It will also zoom in on its intersection with race, gender and other identities, while making an effort to bring participants closer to the realities of climate change in other communities, near and far. Sponsors hope this series will make these issues more accessible to residents and organizations in Evanston in culturally relevant ways. The Climate Resilient Communities Series is funded by the “Resilient Communities: Libraries Respond to Climate Change” grant provided by the American Libraries Association. The city of Evanston and the Evanston Public Library give thanks to Ajiah Gilbert, who was responsible for the Environmental Racism and Community Gardens session, and Bea Echevarria who spearheaded the complete series of programs. View a recording of the Environmental Racism and Community Gardens session here.

Learn more here


Climate Finance Advisors

EU-USCA Cooperation: Integrating Insurance for a Resilient Future

Under the EU-USCA Climate Risk and Resilience Cooperation, a first-of-its-kind collaboration between the European Union and U.S. Climate Alliance, Climate Finance Advisors hosted Integrating Insurance for a Resilient Future, a webinar on how policymakers can leverage insurance tools to enhance climate resilience.

View the presentation


EPA Launches the Environmental Justice and Systemic Racism Speaker Series

The Environmental Protection Agency is launching the Environmental Justice (EJ) and Systemic Racism Speaker Series. The first session will highlight The Mapping Inequality Project, a unique collaboration on redlining and current environmental challenges that provides publicly accessible digitized versions of redlining maps for about 200 cities. This project has generated trailblazing work in the area of EJ and systemic racism. Two of its founders will discuss the genesis, philosophy, methodology and impact of this game-changing project.

Speakers:

  • Dr. Robert Nelson, Director, Digital Scholarship Laboratory, University of Richmond 
  • Dr. LaDale Winling, Associate Professor of History, Virginia Tech
  • Moderated by Charles Lee, Senior Policy Advisor for Environmental Justice, EPA

Date and Time: March 4, 2021, 12–1 p.m. EST

Register here


EDF Blog

EDF Blog: Four Ways to Reduce Disproportionate Flood Risk and Build Resilience for All Communities

America has a flood risk gap that places low-income communities and communities of color at higher risk from flooding. It’s time to put equity at the center of our nation’s flood risk management strategy and shrink America’s flood risk gap.

Read more here


Create

CREATE: The Ultimate Resilient House Competition 

We are challenging university students in Puerto Rico to research, design and build the strongest, most resilient, energy and water efficient, smart, simple and fast to build, affordable structures in the world. The net zero energy homes will be tested to see how effective they are at resisting wind storms, earthquakes, floods, fire, mold and insect penetration in the ultimate university engineering and architectural competition.  

Learn more here 


Civil Engineers to Release 2021 Infrastructure Report Card – Register Here!

The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) will release their quadrennial Infrastructure Report Card on March 3, 2021. America’s infrastructure will earn a cumulative GPA based on 17 category grades, including bridges, dams, drinking water systems and much more. After the grades are unveiled, ASCE will convene a program of elected officials, decision makers and thought leaders to discuss solutions for raising our infrastructure GPA.

Register here  


EESI

New EESI Fact Sheet: How Can Revolving Loan Funds Make Our Coasts More Resilient?

How Can Revolving Loan Funds (RLFs) Make Our Coasts More Resilient? examines two RLFs that focus on shoreline resilience. The feasibility of one is being assessed in Puget Sound, Washington, and the other has been helping communities in Maryland for several decades and has inspired many subsequent programs.

Read more here


International Code Council: Global Resiliency Dialogue Releases Report Detailing Consideration of Climate Risk in Building Codes

The Global Resiliency Dialogue published findings of its first international survey in the report, The Use of Climate Data and Assessment of Extreme Weather Event Risks in Building Codes Around the World. The Dialogue is a joint initiative of the International Code Council and code development organizations from Canada, Australia and New Zealand. The report is the first deliverable of the Global Resiliency Dialogue and provides valuable context about the current level of integration of climate science in the provisions of advanced building codes around the world.

Read the report here


Wharton Risk Center

New Publications from the Wharton Risk Center

Community-Based Catastrophe Insurance: A model for closing the disaster protection gap.

Local and regional leaders, other public officials, business leaders and residents in the United States need innovative new models of catastrophe insurance delivery to secure widespread coverage and help sustain communities following a catastrophic event. One such approach is community-based catastrophe insurance. This report was produced in partnership with Marsh & McLennan and Guy Carpenter.

Read more here

 

Improving the Post-Flood Financial Resilience of Lower-Income Households through Insurance

Low- and moderate- income (LMI) households and communities suffer disproportionately from disasters, but there are a few policies or programs to help them achieve post-disaster financial resilience. This brief is intended to help policymakers begin the conversation about what new or supplemental policies could help LMI households in at-risk areas. In particular, it explores the critical role insurance can play in securing financial resilience.

Read the brief

 


Research Counts

Natural Hazards Center Releases Special Collections of Research Counts

The Natural Hazards Center established the Research Counts series to help get recent research findings into the hands of emergency managers and other practitioners. With the support of FEMA, the Center regularly publishes articles through the series. In addition, and in partnership with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Natural Hazards Center recently released special collections on Children and Disasters and Mass Sheltering and Disasters.  

Read more here

 

Updates from the Union of Concerned Scientists

UCS 1

The Scientific Integrity Act’s Reintroduction 

Together, the presidential memorandum and Scientific Integrity Act could establish the strongest protections for federal scientists and their work that we have ever seen in modern history. 

Read more here

 

UCS 2

Federal Agencies Have Lost Hundreds of Scientists Since 2017. What Comes Next?

Rebuilding is not enough. Federal science must be fortified. In the coming months, the Biden administration must do all it can to invite more early-career scientists into government—for example, by bolstering fellowship programs and expanding recruitment to underrepresented communities. 

Read more here

 

UCS 3

Science for Public Good Fund - Application Form 

Science Network at the Union of Concerned Scientists is looking to support creative new approaches to social advocacy work through the Science for Public Good Fund. During this transitory time, it is as important as ever for scientists to continue showing up and advocating for science to support building the world we want to see.  

Read more here

 

Internally Act

Dr. Atyia Martin and All Aces Launch the IntentionallyAct.com Learning Portal and Publish eBook on Integrating Racial + Social Equity into Homeland Security + Emergency Management

IntentionallyAct.com is an online learning community and platform for diversity, equity and inclusion, focused on racial equity and justice. On the website, you can find activities and resources including the eBook “Integrating Racial + Social Equity into Homeland Security + Emergency Management.” 

Learn more here


Enterprise Community Partners and the City of Miami Launch KEEP SAFE MIAMI

KEEP SAFE MIAMI is a new program developed by Enterprise Community Partners and the city of Miami that will equip affordable housing owners and operators with tools to assess their buildings’ resilience to climate change and natural disasters, and provide them with actionable strategies and guidance on financing to address these vulnerabilities.

Read more here


Kidney

Kidney Community Emergency Response (KCER) Program: Disaster Resources for the End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) Community

For people receiving kidney dialysis or living with a kidney transplant, planning for emergencies and disasters can be the difference between life and death. Dialysis and kidney transplant patients must take special preparedness measures to ensure their own health and safety during and after disasters.

The KCER Programunder contract with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, provides technical assistance to ESRD Networks, kidney organizations, and other groups to ensure timely and efficient disaster preparedness, response and recovery for the kidney community. The KCER Program's disaster preparedness resources help save lives, improve outcomes, empower patients and families, educate healthcare workers, build partnerships with stakeholders, promote readiness in the community and support the ESRD Networks. 

Learn more here


Resilience 21 Releases 10 Recommended Federal Actions to Build a More Resilient Nation

Resilience 21, a coalition of practitioners from across the United States working to safeguard communities from risks from a changing climate, has released a set of 10 recommended federal actions the Biden administration can take in the first 100 days of the administration. The 100-day action plan for the new administration lays out steps for shifting from crisis response to proactive planning that can at once address the social, economic and environmental challenges facing the nation in the years ahead.

Read more here


Updates from the Pew Charitable Trusts

Upcoming Pew Webinar – Flood Resilience in the Year Ahead: Opportunities for the New Congress

Please join the Pew Charitable Trusts and the BuildStrong Coalition from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. EST on March 5 for a discussion with elected officials and policy experts on ways the 117th Congress can better support state and local efforts to address growing flood risk posed by the increasing severity and frequency of disasters and climate impacts. Those interested can register here.

 Speakers will include:

  • Congressman David E. Price, North Carolina District 4
  • Ben Grumbles, Maryland Secretary of Environment
  • Sarah Murdock, Director, U.S. Climate Resilience and Water Policy, The Nature Conservancy
  • Forbes Tompkins, Manager, Pew Charitable Trusts’ Flood-Prepared Communities Initiative
  • Pamela Williams, Executive Director, BuildStrong Coalition
  • Rebecca Hersher, Reporter, Science Desk, NPR

Register here

Pew Webinar Recap and Recording – Flood Resilience in the Year Ahead: State Innovation and Opportunities

On January 21, the Pew Charitable Trusts hosted leaders from New Jersey, Rhode Island and Wisconsin to discuss priorities and opportunities in 2021 that can advance efforts to reduce impacts from flooding and related climate disasters. Dan Lauf of the National Governors Association led a conversation on respective approaches within each state to develop and implement comprehensive, long-term resilience plans. Key themes focused on social vulnerability and equity, creative financing mechanisms and developing plans with an elongated time horizon in anticipation of future climate risks.

Learn more here


Updates from Climate Resilience Consulting 

Climate Resilience Consulting and I-DIEM: Why Is the Resilience Field So White?

We cannot solely advocate for climate, hazards and resilience and exclude factors that contribute to vulnerability, as this works against all that we aspire to achieve in the resilient decade. So we need to address why the climate resilience field is so white, and make room for underrepresented ACTORS within resilience leadership.

Read more here

More Urgency, Not Less: The COVID-19 Pandemic’s Lessons for Local Climate Leadership

This report by Boston University Institute for Sustainable Energy, Climate Resilience Consulting and Innovation Network for Communities is the first of three that provides community leaders, inside and outside local government, with guidance about navigating their climate-action priorities through the gauntlet of challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic and the ensuing economic crisis.

Read the report here