Climate and Cities
THOUGHT LEADERSHIP
WHAT IS CLIMATE MIGRATION?
We’ve been warned by a season of wildfires in the West, hurricanes in the Southeast, and rising tides all along the coast. Climate change threatens cities and neighborhoods around the world, compelling millions to consider leaving these high-risk areas. A wave of migrations will create new challenges and opportunities for cities across North America and the planet, placing incalculable stress on financial markets, local governments, and communities.
How do we begin to have the difficult conversation around managed retreat away from coastlines, floodplains, and other high-risk areas?
We‘ve compiled a reading list of our favorite articles from popular media outlets that speak to the urgency of the crisis, along with some leading research from our event partners and speakers:
RESEARCH
- McKinsey Global Institute: "Climate risk and response: physical hazards and socioeconomic impacts"
- McKinsey Global Institute: "McKinsey on Climate Change"
- US Environmental Protection Agency: "Regional Resilience Toolkit"
ARTICLES
- ProPublica: "New Climate Maps Show a Transformed United States"
- The New York Times Magazine: "The Great Climate Migration Has Begun"
- The New Yorker: "The Great Climate Migration Has Begun"
THE BIG PICTURE
- Innovative Approaches to Urban Climate Action, presented by Jacobs.
- Climate Migration, The Allure of Resilient Districts on Higher Ground, presented by Jacobs.
PROGRAMS
Higher Ground
Building the cities we need for climate change. We explore when to adapt and when to retreat, planning for long-term, sustainable and equitable growth, financing new resilient infrastructure and communities, city-led business and migrant attraction strategies, and more.
WORLDWIDE STREAM, DECEMBER 1-2, 2020
Higher Ground aims to shape the conversation around cities and climate change by convening a global network of stakeholders to bring climate migration and managed retreat to the forefront of adaptation strategies; feature data-driven tools, tactics, projects, and policies for cities and public officials grappling with these challenges; and disseminate findings and successes through convenings, toolkits, and consultations to cities striving for transformation.
Everyone Should Know What's Coming with Keynote Introduction by Spencer Glendon
Leading By Example: Implementing the SDGs in Canada
Since the introduction of the 2030 Agenda, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have been
adopted as a guiding framework for governments across the world at every level, yet, progress on implementing them has been slow and at times, exclusionary toward those that paved the groundwork for these goals to exist in the first place.
Cities, regions, and towns are in a unique position to make great progress toward implementation, creating a blueprint for local action that can be adapted and scaled, complete with innovative, ambitious, and collaborative approaches.
Leading by Example convened 150 multi-sectoral practitioners to showcase best practices, and form strong multi-sectoral partnerships around the Sustainable Development Goals in the Canadian context.
As part of the event, NewCities, in partnership with the Victoria Foundation, awarded a set of microgrants to local organizations in British Columbia to support and promote local action on SDG #2, 5, 11, 13, and 14.
Members
Partners
