“The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.” -Alvin Toffler

Friday, July 17, 2020

News & Updates from the Georgetown Climate Center. July 17, 2020


News & Updates from
the Georgetown Climate Center


Now Available: Managed Retreat Toolkit
for state and local governments

Communities across the U.S. are facing urgent challenges from sea-level rise and climate impacts; a new report from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration documented the increasing frequency of "sunny-day" flooding in coastal areas, and recent analysis by the First Street Foundation suggests that millions more U.S. homes are at risk of catastrophic flooding than previously estimated. Communities and states are increasingly considering managed retreat – the voluntary movement of communities and transition of ecosystems away from vulnerable coastal areas – as a strategy for protecting people, infrastructure, buildings, and coastal ecosystems from the impacts of climate change. 

To help state and local policymakers who are considering managed retreat, the Georgetown Climate Center (GCC) this week released the Managed Retreat Toolkit. The first comprehensive online legal and policy resource on managed retreat, the toolkit combines legal and policy tools, best and emerging practices, and case studies to support peer learning, public engagement, and decisionmaking around managed retreat and climate adaptation. 

On July 15, GCC hosted a launch webinar that drew more than 450 attendees. Featured speakers included Fawn McGee of the New Jersey Blue Acres Program and Liz Williams Russell of the Foundation for Louisiana, who discussed their experiences working with communities to implement retreat strategies. The Blue Acres Program and LA SAFE, which the Foundation for Louisiana helps implement, are both featured in case studies in the Managed Retreat Toolkit. (Watch the recorded webinar here.)

The toolkit features more than 70 case studies from communities across the US that have begun engaging with managed retreat strategies. GCC also released Managing the Retreat from Rising Seas, a companion publication that presents 17 case studies in greater depth.

GCC developed the Managed Retreat Toolkit in concert with leading state, local, and federal policymakers, academic leaders, and people from affected communities. Between 2018 and 2020, GCC’s outreach efforts related to the development of the Managed Retreat Toolkit have engaged more than 1,000 people at more than 20 events, a testament to the growing interest in this important topic.


GCC would like to thank the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation (DDCF) and the other generous funders who support GCC's work for making this project possible, and DDCF's Sacha Spector for participating in this week's launch event. For questions, contact GCC Senior Associate and toolkit lead author Katie Spidalieri, Katie.Spidalieri@georgetown.edu


Register Now: GCC's Equitable Adaptation
Legal & Policy Toolkit launches July 29

Please join the Georgetown Climate Center on Wednesday, July 29, 2020, for a webinar launching GCC’s new Equitable Adaptation Legal & Policy Toolkit, an online resource for community-based organizations and state and local governments working to put frontline communities first.

The GCC team will provide an overview of the toolkit's contents and how it was developed. The webinar will also feature speakers Jalonne White-Newsome (Kresge Foundation), Mayra Cruz (Catalyst Miami), and Melissa Deas (D.C. Dept. of Energy & Environment).

The Equitable Adaptation Legal & Policy Toolkit explores best emerging practices, legal and policy tools, and case studies to help state and local governments work with frontline communities to develop and implement equitable climate adaptation solutions.

The toolkit was co-created by GCC staff and a panel of advisors, and informed by the insights and expertise of a network of local, state, and federal adaptation practitioners; community-based organization leaders; and other partners. Learn more about the Equitable Adaptation Legal & Policy Toolkit.


Vicki Arroyo joins Amy Holm of
The Climate Registry for latest episode of
Coffee with Climate Leaders

Executive Director Vicki Arroyo joined Amy Holm, Executive Director of The Climate Registry for a conversation on GCC's work promoting state and federal climate action in the latest installment of Coffee with Climate Leaders, a video series highlighting the climate work continuing even in light of the global pandemic. Vicki shares the state action progressing on clean and resilient transportation through the bipartisan Transportation and Climate Initiative, a coalition of Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states facilitated by GCC. She also discusses some proposed climate-related federal legislation, including making climate resilience and clean energy and transportation a priority in climate, infrastructure and COVID-19 relief legislation. The interview is available now on YouTube and on The Climate Registry's website.


Counterfieit PPE Identification and dangerous hand sanitizers July 2020


The EMR-ISAC InfoGram for July 16, 2020 contains the following articles:

1. FDA adds to the list of dangerous hand sanitizers containing methanol

2. Risks of counterfeit PPE, how to identify them, how to report them

3. FEMA releases updated public assistance guidance

4. New industrial control system security 5-year strategy released

5. Cyber Threats

Cooked: Survival by Zip Code


Cooked: Survival by Zip Code

Independent Lens

Cooked: Survival by Zip Code

Were the 739 deaths from Chicago's 1995 heatwave a one-time tragedy or appalling trend?

Racism in America POV: Every Mother's Son


The Avett Brothers at Red Rocks


Three mothers find themselves united to transform their grief into profound social change. Explore this and more stories in our Racism in America playlist, which examines the racial disparities in education, the economy, health care and the criminal justice system.

Popular Posts

ARCHIVE List 2011 - Present

Search This Blog