Resilient Cities Catalyst
We accelerate action and build capacity within communities, cities and regions.
We help local leaders turn complex resilience challenges into funded, implementable solutions that last.
Our Vision
We envision a world where cities and communities take bold action to ensure people, particularly the most vulnerable, are safer, healthier and more prosperous despite the increasingly frequent shocks and persistent stresses of our time.
The challenge
Cities are trying to solve 21st-century problems with 20th-century tools and structures.
RCC works with cities and communities who still rely on 20th-century structures and tools even as we face evolving climate and socioeconomic threats.
RCC supports partners in implementing effective structures, approaches, and methods that deliver better outcomes for communities.
HOW WE WORK
Our Approach, Step by Step
We are advisors, collaborators, and partners, working hand-in-hand with leaders and practitioners across four moments.
Our tools and methods are adaptive and flexible, and each moment produces something a city can use — a plan, a design, a funding strategy, a playbook.
01
Define and Align Priorities
We bring uncommon partners into the same room and get agreement on what the risk is and which priorities come first.
- Analytical Tools
- Strategic Plans
- Research Reports
02
Design and Launch Implementable Solutions
Priorities become specific and we can visualize the path forward, designed with the people who will use it.
- Design Briefs
- Concept Notes
- Policy Recommendations
03
Identify and Activate Resources
Funding and regulatory paths are established, and a real project gets built.
- Implementation Plans
- Financing Strategies
- Funding Collateral
04
Forge New Models of Collaboration
We connect communities, public institutions, and private partners so the work keeps going. What worked gets documented and shared with other cities.
- Knowledge Exchange
- Workshops
- Alignment Facilitation
Impact
Our Impact, By the Numbers
$776Min funding directed to project implementation
12K+people convened to develop solutions
80multi-sector partnerships activated
305projects designed, funded, or implemented
Impact Stories
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Community Co-Design to Address Extreme Heat in Phoenix
RCC, the City of Phoenix, and Unlimited Potential equipped local leaders to co-design heat and mobility solutions grounded in neighborhood priorities.
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Oceanside’s Community-Led Blueprint for Coastal Resilience
The RE:BEACH design competition combines global coastal innovation with local leadership to test a nature-based sand-retention pilot.
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Addressing the Impacts of Extreme Heat in Tampa
A citywide heat resilience playbook and neighborhood pilots are moving Tampa from vulnerability analysis toward visible cooling interventions.
Portfolio
See RCC’s work in action.
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Developing an International Standard for Climate Resilience Project Preparation
RCC and the Gold Standard Foundation developed and piloted a framework and assessment tool for local climate resilience projects.
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Flood Early Warning Systems & Risk Reduction in Montego Bay, Jamaica
Three sensor-based early warning systems aim to reduce flood risk in central Montego Bay.
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Resilient Austin Playbook
Helping move the City from vision to implementation on priority economic and climate resilience initiatives.
Featured News
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Two Reports on Building and Funding Project Pipelines
Read the article →: Two Reports on Building and Funding Project Pipelines -
Announcing the First Resilience District Incubator Pilot Communities
Read the article →: Announcing the First Resilience District Incubator Pilot Communities -
Four Community-Led Projects Selected for California Resilience Implementation Accelerator, Expanding Resilience Efforts Across California
Read the article →: Four Community-Led Projects Selected for California Resilience Implementation Accelerator, Expanding Resilience Efforts Across California
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