Last December, the Rockefeller Foundation’s 100 Resilient Cities Challengeannounced the first 32 cities selected in the program, ranging from Ashkelon, Israel, to Vejle, Denmark. This month, the second round of the challenge opens: applications for the program are now available. By the end of this year, 33 more cities will have been accepted into the initiative.
Related: Register for ULI’s Building the Resilient City
“We’ve already seen the cobenefits of resilience begin to flourish in our partner cities—what we call the ‘resilience dividend.’ We look forward to inviting more cities to work with us and join the incredible global movement to build urban resilience,” Rockefeller Foundation president Judith Rodin wrote in an e-mailed announcement. “Because while we cannot predict or prevent every disruption or disaster, together we can mitigate the damage and the toll they take on economies, ecosystems, and, most importantly, people—and ensure our urban places remain centers for innovation and opportunity for the future.”
Part of the challenge involves designating a “chief resilience officer,” which San Francisco has already done with the appointment of Patrick Otellini. Otellini will join other experts from New York City and New Orleans in speaking about lessons learned from natural disasters in their respective cities at ULI’s Building the Resilient City Conference, scheduled for September 4 and 5 in San Francisco.
In addition to financial and logistical guidance for establishing the position of chief resilience officer as part of the city’s government, the 100 cities selected will receive: expert support for development of a robust resilience strategy; access to solutions, service providers, and partners from the private, public and NGO sectors who can help them develop and implement their resilience strategies; and membership of a global network of member cities who can learn from and help each other.
