The diverse populations of the Northeast United States face unique and growing vulnerabilities to extreme and compound climate events. Decision makers and communities, often with support from the Consortium for Climate Risk in the Urban Northeast, have pioneered innovative resilience experiments in response. The Consortium for Climate Risk in the Urban Northeast (CCRUN) is part of NOAA’s Regional Integrated Sciences and Assessments (RISA) program, which supports research teams that help expand and build the nation's capacity to prepare for and adapt to climate variability and change.
Several high-profile events – including Hurricane Sandy in 2012 – demonstrated how vulnerable the urban Northeast corridor is to weather and climate extremes, as well as the inequitable distribution of risks. Adaptation that does not address environmental justice and inequality is not sustainable. CCRUN aims to contribute to environmental justice goals of equal access to climate information and services. The consortium has an Equity Group which has collaborated with diverse stakeholders to develop frameworks, processes, and methods for incorporating equity into adaptation planning across the Northeast region.
Recent events and future climate projections have fostered awareness among decision-makers and scientists that much more work is needed to plan for climate change impacts on the region. To address these challenges, CCRUN brings together an interdisciplinary team of natural, applied, and social scientists, with deep stakeholder relationships and expertise in climate science, coasts and flooding, public health, engineering and urban design, equity, and social, behavioral, and economic science. Cities and medium and smaller sized communities throughout the urban Northeast have pioneered efforts to plan and implement a variety of adaptation strategies to enhance climate resilience, with many contributions from the CCRUN team.
Additional information: http://www.ccrun.org
