One challenge of planning for resilience in collaboration with communities is the complex vocabulary for climate and nature-based solutions. The Climate Strong Communities (CSC) program of the NYC Mayor’s Office of Climate & Environmental Justice (MOCEJ) tackles this challenge head-on. Through CSC, MOCEJ is planning adaptation projects in over a dozen neighborhoods in collaboration... Continue Reading
One challenge of planning for resilience in collaboration with communities is the complex vocabulary for climate and nature-based solutions. The Climate Strong Communities (CSC) program of the NYC Mayor’s Office of Climate & Environmental Justice (MOCEJ) tackles this challenge head-on. Through CSC, MOCEJ is planning adaptation projects in over a dozen neighborhoods in collaboration with a network of 65 community partners. Leading engagement on a team led by One Architecture and Urbanism, Starr Whitehouse worked with the graphic designers at Manuel Miranda Practice to create a communications toolkit in support of an engagement program that includes workshops, tabling, and neighborhood walks.
In order for city government to effectively collaborate with community partners, everyone needs a shared vocabulary. What are “climate hazards?” What is the “life cycle” of capital projects and how do agencies plan them? What are “nature-based solutions?” The communications toolkit sheds light on these terms through posters, postcards, a flash card deck, and exhibition boards. The card deck uses non-technical language and simple graphic design to define climate risk, illustrate resilience solutions, and visualize solutions in urban spaces. The deck facilitates both structured and open-ended activities, from learning vocabulary to identifying and prioritizing solutions for a neighborhood. The team used these tools in planning workshops, while community partners have incorporated them into their own engagement, organically extending the reach of CSC.
The exhibition similarly aimed to elevate community voices through 12 boards that describe the program and highlight CSC neighborhoods. Pop-up exhibitions were held in branch libraries in CSC neighborhoods across the five boroughs, while ‘central’ exhibitions at the New York Public Library and American Museum of Natural History showcased all the neighborhoods – educating the broader public about how communities are adapting. A curriculum extends the reach of CSC into New York City classrooms and engages young people. By creating sustained, organic conversations about resilience, CSC is building partnerships between the city and communities to support the long-term viability of resilience projects.
