Resiliency at Work: Putting People and Equity First

The climate crisis is a challenge like no other. The accelerating physical consequences of a changing climate have become more pronounced with record-breaking, unpredictable weather events including severe flooding, devastating wildfires, extreme heat and lives lost. Resilient communities can proactively prepare for, adapt to changing conditions and rebound. Building resilience at a community scale embraces the knowledge from the communities on the front lines of climate change. The HUD funding allocated to the communities of New Orleans, Norfolk and Paradise has been vital in launching local rebuilding efforts that are also addressing environmental inequity and remediating historical disadvantages. Nonprofit Elemental Excelerator’s mission is to redesign the systems at the root of climate change by breaking down barriers to innovation with its portfolio of entrepreneurs. These climate tech solutions that mirror the intersection of technology and embedded equity are critical levers for community change and improvement. The emerging network of community centric resilience hubs in Hawaii shows how the needs of individuals and communities define systemic approaches to foster well-being. Communities are the heartbeat of resilience. Now is the time to co-create solutions at the intersection of climate and community to make real progress and foster coherence to bolster community capacity.