Climate and the Community: Centering Equity in Vulnerability Assessments 3i4i6v

The LA County Chief Sustainability Office set out in 2020 to accomplish a monumental task: assess the risks and challenges that a changing climate will bring to over 10 million people and physical infrastructure spanning 182 square miles—while incorporating the needs and priorities of the County’s most vulnerable populations. The result of this collaboration with Climate Resolve is the County of Los Angeles Climate Vulnerability Assessment (CVA), an impressive document that centers equity and represents extensive community outreach. ELI’s own Cynthia R. Harris sits down with LA County’s Sustainability Program Director Kristen Torres Pawling and Climate Resolve’s Director of Climate Planning and Resilience Natalie Hernandez to walk through LA County’s experience and learn how every municipality, large or small, can learn from LA County’s experience in carrying out their own equity-centered CVA and prepare to meet their community’s needs in a changing climate. In This Episode We Cover What a Climate Vulnerability Assessment is and why every local government should adopt a CVA Most important components of a strong CVA: physical assessment, social assessment, and cascading impacts Identifying your most vulnerable communities and questioning your assumptions about them Centering equity and effective outreach to your most vulnerable community Leveraging your CVA to bring in grants and loans to fund critical infrastructure Building strong community partnerships to carry out your CVA and implement your Climate Adaptation Plan And so much more! 1g2844