10.3 Community-Level Climate Resilience and Adaptation Funding in Action | Podcast | EESI – Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI)

Report on Community-Led Climate Resilience and Sustainable Development Goals

Introduction: Capacity Building for Climate Action

• Capacity building has been identified as a critical component for the successful implementation of community-led climate adaptation and resilience projects.
• These efforts directly support the objectives of Sustainable Development Goal 13 (Climate Action), which emphasizes the need to strengthen resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards and natural disasters in all countries.
• Local initiatives are fundamental to integrating climate change measures into national policies, strategies, and planning.

The Climate Smart Communities Initiative (CSCI) as a Model for SDG 11

• The Climate Resilience Fund’s Climate Smart Communities Initiative (CSCI) provides a functional framework for empowering local action through targeted grants.
• By enabling local resilience efforts, the CSCI contributes to Sustainable Development Goal 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), specifically Target 11.B, which aims to substantially increase the number of cities and human settlements adopting and implementing integrated policies and plans towards inclusion, resource efficiency, mitigation and adaptation to climate change, and resilience to disasters.
• Case studies from communities in Kentucky and Idaho confirm that CSCI grants have been instrumental in making local resilience projects viable.

Multi-Level Governance and Partnerships for the Goals (SDG 17)

1. Local Empowerment: The success of CSCI-funded projects demonstrates the effectiveness of channeling resources directly to community-level actors.
2. Need for Scaled Support: Community leaders report that while foundational, current support is insufficient. Increased financial and technical support from federal and state governments is required to enhance the scope and impact of their work.
3. Strengthening Partnerships: The collaboration between philanthropic organizations like the Climate Resilience Fund, local communities, and the call for government involvement exemplifies the principles of Sustainable Development Goal 17 (Partnerships for the Goals). Effective climate action necessitates multi-stakeholder partnerships that mobilize and share knowledge, expertise, technology, and financial resources.

Analysis of Sustainable Development Goals in the Article

1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?

1. SDG 13: Climate Action

   • The article’s central theme is climate change, specifically focusing on “community-led climate adaptation and resilience projects,” “climate change solutions,” and the “Climate Resilience Fund.” This directly aligns with the goal of taking urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts.

2. SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

   • The article emphasizes action at the local level, mentioning “community-level climate resilience,” “community leaders from Kentucky to Idaho,” and “local resilience efforts.” This connects to the goal of making cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable, particularly in the context of climate resilience.

3. SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals

   • The article highlights the collaborative nature of the work. It describes an initiative involving the “Climate Resilience Fund,” “community leaders,” and a call for “federal and state support.” This multi-stakeholder approach, involving different levels of government and civil society organizations to achieve a common goal, is the core of SDG 17.

2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?

1. Targets under SDG 13 (Climate Action)

   • Target 13.1: Strengthen resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards and natural disasters in all countries. The article’s focus on “community-led climate adaptation and resilience projects” and “local resilience efforts” directly addresses this target by describing actions to build adaptive capacity at the community level.
   • Target 13.3: Improve education, awareness-raising and human and institutional capacity on climate change mitigation, adaptation, impact reduction and early warning. The article explicitly states that “Capacity building is crucial to the success of community-led climate adaptation and resilience projects,” which is a direct reference to this target.

2. Target under SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities)

   • Target 11.b: By 2020, substantially increase the number of cities and human settlements adopting and implementing integrated policies and plans towards inclusion, resource efficiency, mitigation and adaptation to climate change, and disaster risk reduction and management. The “Climate Smart Communities Initiative (CSCI)” discussed in the article is an example of a plan being implemented at the community level to foster adaptation and resilience.

3. Target under SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals)

   • Target 17.17: Encourage and promote effective public, public-private and civil society partnerships, building on the experience and resourcing strategies of partnerships. The collaboration between the Climate Resilience Fund (civil society/private), community leaders (local actors), and the call for “federal and state support” (public) to make local efforts “even more impactful” is a clear example of the multi-stakeholder partnership model this target promotes.

3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?

• The article does not mention official SDG indicators but implies several ways progress could be measured based on its content:
• Number of community-led resilience projects: The article discusses how “CSCI grants have made local resilience efforts possible.” Counting the number of such projects funded and implemented would be a direct indicator of progress towards Target 13.1 and 11.b.
• Financial resources mobilized: The mention of “CSCI grants” and the need for “federal and state support” implies that the amount of funding directed towards community resilience projects is a key metric for measuring the scale of these efforts (relevant to Target 17.17).
• Number of communities with enhanced capacity: Since “Capacity building is crucial,” an implied indicator for Target 13.3 would be the number of communities or community leaders who have participated in initiatives like the CSCI to build their capacity for climate adaptation.

4. Create a table with three columns titled ‘SDGs, Targets and Indicators” to present the findings from analyzing the article.

Source: eesi.org