|
FEBRUARY 2023
Addressing Equity in Resilience
Did you know Black communities are often disproportionately impacted from disasters?
In 2022, FEMA teamed up with the Ad Council to create a campaign encouraging Black communities to create “A Lasting Legacy” by preparing for disasters. The campaign was designed to speak directly to communities who need assistance the most and deserve equitable access to preparedness resources that protect them and their property. “By continuing to advance accessibility and cultural competency in our preparedness messaging, we can make sure that everyone is ready when disaster strikes,” said FEMA Administrator Criswell.
In honor of Black History Month, we urge our partners to ensure that they are participating in equitable practices to ensure that all communities feel represented and supported. To learn more about equity from a variety of Black leaders, check out the “Building Alliances for Equitable Resilience” resource co-created by speakers from the RNPN’s 2020 “Alliances for Equity” Partnership Forum.
To continued partnership,
The Resilient Nation Partnership Network
|
-
Featured Event: RNPN: Resilience Exchange – Advancing Rural and Agricultural Community Resilience, February 22 at 1 p.m. ET
-
EESI: Briefing Series: Congressional Climate Camp 2023 – Non-CO2 Greenhouse Gases, February 23 at 2 p.m. ET
-
Wichita State University: Building a Resilient Wichita: Energy Burden and the Inflation Reduction Act, February 23 at 6:30 p.m. ET
-
DRI International: DRI2023 Conference, starting February 26
-
EESI: Briefing Series: Congressional Climate Camp 2023 – Implementing the Inflation Reduction Act and Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, March 9 at 2 p.m. ET
-
RNPN: Ideation Hour – Better Together: A Holistic Approach to Resilience, March 29 at 1 p.m. ET
-
Wichita State University: Building a Resilient Wichita: Indigenous Wisdom and Climate Change, April 1 at 3 p.m. ET
-
Climate Reality: Power Up Training: From Acts to Action, starting April 6
-
Wichita State University: Building a Resilient Wichita: Inclusive Community Engagement, April 20 at 6:30 p.m. ET
-
RNPN: "Next Generation of Resilience" Student Showcase: Voices of the Future, April 26 at 1 p.m. ET
-
Transportation Research Board: Transportation 2023: International Conference on Extreme Weather and Climate Change Challenges, starting November 13
Climate and Societal Interaction’s CAP/RISA: Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) Funding Opportunity: The Climate Adaptation Partnerships (CAP) program, formerly the Regional Integrated Sciences and Assessments (RISA) program, in the Climate and Societal Interactions (CSI) division of the Climate Program Office has just published a funding opportunity CAP is soliciting applications for three competitions, with approximately $3.6 million available in FY22/23. (Approximately $4.8 million is available in total.) Projects will work across existing CAP/RISA teams and expand activity regions to test, scale and transfer knowledge to build national adaptation capacity. The principal investigator of the proposal must be a member of a current CAP/RISA team. The three competitions are as follows:
- Improving Engagement Methods for Coastal Resilience Planning.
- Assessing Tradeoffs and Co-Benefits for Complex Decision-Making in Communities Facing Coastal Inundation and/or Inland Flooding.
- Identifying Complex Interactions Between Social Infrastructure and Wildfire Risks to Improve Community Adaptive Capacity.
Letters of intent should be received by email by 5 p.m. ET on February 1, 2023.
Full applications must be received by 5 p.m. ET on March 29, 2023.
|
Partner News
RNPN: Thank You to Everyone Who Attended the RNPN Kickoff!
|
During our January Kickoff, we heard two great presentations on the art of storytelling and why it's important. The Resilient Nation Partnership Network team would like to continue our conversations around storytelling!
Our goal is to use this information to bring people together to help meet these goals. Ready to share your story? Visit our Stories of Resilience webpage for more information.
|
|
 |
Call for Student Story Submissions
The RNPN is excited to announce this year’s “Next Generation of Resilience” Student Showcase. On April 26, four students will share their perspectives focused on this year’s theme: Voices of the Future.
There are two goals for this event. Established professionals will be exposed to youthful, new ideas on natural hazard resilience and climate change. Students will also have the opportunity for their voices to be heard and to network with professionals. All are welcome to attend this event. The audience will include RNPN partners, students and professionals from across the country. To date, the RNPN has members from over 1,600 organizations. Register here.
- Are you an undergraduate or graduate student, 18 years of age or older, or do you know a student who is a great fit for this opportunity? If so, please submit your story here by Tuesday, February 28. Four students will be chosen to share their story at this event.
- Students can add this resume-building experience to employment and graduate school applications. We strongly encourage students from historically Black colleges and universities or those working with tribal and territorial partners on resilience to apply.
|
DRI International: Join the Resilience Community for DRI2023 in Austin, Texas
There’s still time to register for DRI2023, DRI International’s conference for resilience professionals, coming to Austin, Texas, February 26 – March 1! The exciting program includes sessions focused on BCM, cybersecurity, case studies, and much more.
ARISE-US: Check Out Our New Website
ARISE-US now has a website where we are allowing our members and partners to publish blogs and also publicize events to our membership and partners. You can submit a form for blog content and event content.
River Network: Community Leadership for Equitable Climate Resilience – Story Map
Critical to advancing equitable climate solutions is elevating the expertise of community members. Meet five organizations we've collaborated with to catalyze community members stepping into leadership roles, using our Fostering Community Leadership toolkit and generating positive outcomes for communities.
|
Earth Force: Now Open - RISE Challenge Invites Young People To Submit Resilience Projects
The RISE Challenge, a program of Earth Force funded by FEMA, invites young people in Colorado, Illinois, and Montana to design and submit community resilience projects! In the Challenge, students learn how to increase resilience to natural hazards where they live. Along the way, they work with community members to understand context and develop solutions to problems they see. The end result? They make their communities stronger, safer, and more prepared to deal with those hazards.
The Challenge provides implementation funding and a summit where the top projects are presented. Prize money is provided by the Association of State Floodplain Managers (ASFPM) Foundation.
American Flood Coalition: Incorporating Equity Into Emergency Management
The American Flood Coalition spoke with Chauncia Willis, CEO and founder of the Institute for Diversity and Inclusion in Emergency Management, on how emergency managers can equitably serve vulnerable populations.
Partnership for the Civilian Climate Corps: President Biden, Creating a Resilience Corps Will Maximize Our Investments in Climate and Clean Energy
We must leverage effective strategies to engage the next, more diverse, generation and put them on pathways to good-paying jobs in our rapidly growing clean energy and resilience sectors. President Biden can do this by creating a national service corps.
|
Stable Planet Alliance: "Back to Our Future: Climate Restoration and Survival" – A Pivotal Documentary Series for Humanity and Our Choices Ahead
Transmediavision USA, Stable Planet Alliance and partners announce a forthcoming global documentary series on nature-based climate restoration, ecosystem restoration, resilience and regeneration for the future of humanity: "Back to Our Future," for global streaming in 2024.
Perspectives: Incorporating resilience in building design helps mitigate threat of climate change
This article addresses the potential challenges the design and construction industry faces in a world where community building codes may not be up-to-date and adequately incorporate the future impacts of climate change. While developers, engineers, contractors and insurers are well aware of the risks of climate change and the positive impact they can provide, they may not realize the potential exposure they face for failing to incorporate the realities of climate change into binding documents. This article provides resources, legal issues, and steps players in the design and construction industry can take to address these risks.
Join the Southeast & Caribbean Disaster Resilience Partnership!
The Southeast and Caribbean Disaster Resilience Partnership (SCDRP) is a coalition of public and private organizations that collectively seeks to strengthen community resilience. We recently held our Annual Meeting and meet virtually for our Monthly Partnership Meetings on the fourth Thursday of every month at 10 a.m. ET.
Environmental and Energy Study Institute: Climate Adaptation: A Review of Federal Legislation Enacted Since 2017
|
EESI recently published an article that looks at the climate adaptation-related legislation enacted over the past six years—from the 115th through the 117th Congress. The table that serves as the basis of the article includes all 41 laws identified by the review.
|
|
 |
Alabama Natural Hazard Physical Infrastructure Community Resilience Planning Workshop
In approving investments, policymakers consider economic, fiscal and political priorities. The tradeoffs between resilient and traditional solutions are challenging to frame. In Fall 2022, Alabama hosted four resilience planning workshops that included FEMA, the Federal Highway Administration, and local resilience programs and challenges.
Ganpat University: Gateway to Resilience: Surat Resilience Strategy
Surat city, located in the western part of India in the state of Gujarat, on the banks of the river Tapi, is an important trade center and serves as a trade link between India and the Gulf countries. The 1994 Plague completely overhauled the city's government. Floods of various intensity have already been seen in the city in 1968, 1994, 1998, 2002 and 2006. The city has its own resilience plan built on seven strategic pillars, 20 targets, and 63 initiatives/actions to manage administration and advance development. The projects to be created and put into action between 2016 and 2025. There are 11 programs centered on connectivity and mobility. There were seven initiatives found to be related to affordable housing. To address the issues of water availability and quality, 13 initiatives were selected. Under the heading of Employment and Economic Dependency, five projects were noted. Fourteen initiatives centered on the environment and ecosystem were found. Ten initiatives centered on social cohesion were found. Three projects were chosen for the Public Health category.
|
Updates From the Union of Concerned Scientists
|
 Reflections on Black History Month—and the Present for Black Scientists
In order to effectively advocate for Black people (and people in general), we all need to both encourage inclusivity and promote a culture that supports, respects and uplifts ALL Black people (not just our friends, those adjacent to us, and people whose accomplishments have deemed them “worthy” of respect in our society). It should not take another tragedy to remind people that we are worthy of respect and safety in our communities. As scientist-advocates we understand that history is made every day by having a commitment to change and action to do it.
Three Predictions for Climate Litigation in 2023
With recent wins in the courts and a growing community of legal practitioners, 2023 will be filled with more advances in this work. Here are a few predictions for things we’ll see this year.
|
 Ethylene Oxide: New Interactive Map Shows Communities Impacted by Cancer-Causing Chemical
This week, the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) released a report assessing 104 facilities in the United States and Puerto Rico that emit ethylene oxide, a toxic, colorless gas. While the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has known that ethylene oxide is a carcinogen since 2016, the agency currently does not account for these cancer risks in regulations for facilities that use ethylene oxide. The UCS analysis reveals the inequitable toll of this poor regulation: more than 14 million people in the US live within five miles of these facilities.
Storm Elliott Knocked Out Fossil-Fuel Power. We’ve Been Here Before.
To reduce the risk of grid failures and prevent more Elliott- and Uri-type events, the United States must diversify its power system and reduce its reliance on fossil fuels, namely gas and coal. The country can achieve this and mitigate climate change-induced extreme weather by transitioning to cleaner, more flexible, and more resilient resources such as those incentivized by the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).
|
Understanding the Science to Better Protect the Public from Cumulative Impacts
Dr. Devon Payne-Sturges and Dr. Robert H. Sprinkle speak with UCS Kendall Fellow Kristie Ellickson on the subject of cumulative risks and impacts and the unique window of opportunity within the current EPA administration.
 ExxonMobil Accurately Projected Rising Temperatures While Publicly Disparaging Climate Science
More and more evidence accumulates showing that ExxonMobil and other major fossil fuel companies had substantial knowledge of the harmful climate effects of their products and yet continued to manufacture doubt about climate science while increasing fossil fuel production and lobbying to block climate action.
|
|
|
|
|
 EPA Can Save Lives with Tighter Protections on Fine Particulate Pollution
Tens of thousands of lives have been lost over the years because regulations for PM 2.5 were one, two, three or four micrograms per cubic meters higher than they should be. The Biden administration has the chance to save lives with limits set exactly where the science says they should be.
Read more here
|
New White House Guidance Protects Federal Scientists and Their Work
The federal government will now use systematic data collection and analysis to help improve scientific integrity on an ongoing basis. The more work that’s done now to foster a culture of scientific integrity across the federal government the better we will be able to guard against future threats to science in decision-making.
Read more here
|
|
|
Technical Assistance Available
FEMA: Center for Domestic Preparedness
The Center for Domestic Preparedness (CDP) enhances the resiliency of U.S. communities by teaching responders to prepare for and safely respond to a wide range of natural and manmade disasters. The advanced, all-hazards training is free and delivered on the CDP campus in Alabama, at sites around the nation, and online.
Climate Reality Project: Power Up Training – From Acts to Action Let’s Leverage the IRA and Infrastructure Act for Climate Action Now!
|
How can new climate laws help us cut carbon pollution and build more resilient communities? Learn more by joining Climate Reality and former Vice President Al Gore for our free online training Power Up: From Acts to Action in April.
|
|
 |
Enterprise Community Partners: Fourth Climate Resilience Academy (West Coast) Coming Soon
Enterprise Community Partners will launch the fourth climate resilience academy for affordable housing owners and operators, focusing on the West Coast. Launching at the end of April, with applications opening mid-February, the curriculum will provide education and technical assistance on climate risk reduction. Owners and operators of affordable housing in California, Oregon and Washington are encouraged to join this regional cohort to engage with other housing providers, content experts and local stakeholders to learn how to better address the unique hazards of the West Coast. If you have questions, please contact Senior Program Director, Mihir Parikh at mparikh@enterprisecommunity.org.
Environmental Protection Agency: "Creating Co-Benefits Through Hazard Mitigation Planning and Water Resource Management" Training
EPA’s Nonpoint Source (NPS) program, alongside EPA’s Watershed Academy, is excited to announce the release of a web-based training entitled, “Creating Co-Benefits Through Hazard Mitigation Planning and Water Resource Management.” This training was developed with review and feedback from partners at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and supports water quality and hazard mitigation professionals in integrating water quality issues, water resource management, and nature-based practices into state or local Hazard Mitigation Plans (HMPs). Modules in this series can be used as training tools to help planners from both worlds explore activities of mutual interest and benefit. Case studies and real-world examples are provided to demonstrate to hazard mitigation planners how to connect with water resource programs through hazard mitigation planning and to help watershed planners understand the synergies between water resource plans and HMPs.
|
New Resources
Adrienne Arsht-Rockefeller Foundation Resilience Center: The Heat Action Platform
The Heat Action Platform is a one-stop shop where practitioners and policymakers - particularly in municipal and national governments - and development finance institutions can learn how to reduce the risks and impacts of extreme heat. Available in English and Spanish.
Contact: Owen Gow, Associate Director, Adrienne Arsht-Rockefeller Foundation Resilience Center. Email: ogow@atlanticcouncil.org
U.S. Department of Agriculture Southeast Climate Hub: Hurricane Preparation and Recovery Commodity Guides
The USDA Southeast Climate Hub partnered with subject matter experts from university Extension and the USDA Forest Service to coproduce 23 commodity guides that help producers build resilience to and more quickly recover from hurricane impacts.
|
International Code Council: Global Building Resilience Guidelines
The Global Resiliency Dialogue developed the Global Building Resilience Guidelines which provides a framework for jurisdictions around the world to integrate future-focused climate science into building codes and standards to enhance building resilience in response to future climate risks.
|
Environmental Defense Fund: Inclusive Insurance for Climate-Related Disasters
Climate-related disasters are increasing, causing long-term harm for those with few financial safety nets. To address these disparities, we need inclusive disaster insurance that is affordable, accessible, transparent and just. Building an inclusive insurance market for climate-related disasters in the U.S. requires a complementary range of policies, programs, regulations and products across the public and private sector. Read more in a new report written by Environmental Defense Fund economists, Carolyn Kousky and Karina French, in partnership with Ceres.
|
RNPN: "Building Alliances for Equitable Resilience" Resource
The Resilient Nation Partnership Network and 26 partners co-authored and released the “Building Alliances for Equitable Resilience” resource, which features insights, reflections, resources and contact information that organizations can use to build equitable practices into their day-to-day work.
|
|
|
|
