Toward Climate Resilience

The Union of Concerned Scientists proposes a climate resilience framework based on narrowing the 'resilience gap' through combined mitigation and adaptation efforts. The report outlines 15 principles categorized by rigorous science, equitable outcomes, and ambitious common sense to ensure adaptation is scientifically sound and socially just.

• The 'climate resilience gap' is defined as the extent of climate change-driven conditions for which people, communities, states, and countries remain unprepared, leaving them open to harmful impacts. Narrowing this gap requires aggressive action on both climate mitigation and adaptation.
• Adaptation planning must move beyond historical climate patterns, as these can no longer be used to predict future conditions. Relying on outdated historical data can increase vulnerability to current and future risks.
• Equitable adaptation requires that the costs of responding to climate change and the benefits of resilience-building are shared fairly. There is a risk that public investments are preferentially allocated to higher-value locations and wealthier households due to a focus on monetary damage values.
• Effective adaptation should involve 'deciding with, not for,' meaning affected communities and groups must be directly engaged in shaping decisions. This includes 'building back better' from a quality-of-life perspective as determined by local residents.
• Maladaptation occurs when policies create, perpetuate, or exacerbate climate risk. Examples include permitting development based on outdated zoning or implementing adaptation measures that increase heat-trapping gas emissions.
• Proactive investment in preparedness is significantly more cost-effective than disaster recovery. In the context of US coasts, spending one dollar proactively can save up to four dollars on recovery.
• While adaptation is necessary, the most effective way to limit the pace and magnitude of climate change remains deep reductions in heat-trapping emissions. Adaptation measures should be low-emissions and synergistic with mitigation.

APA

Union of Concerned Scientists (2016). Toward Climate Resilience. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/attach/2016/06/climate-resilience-framework-and-principles.pdf

Chicago

Union of Concerned Scientists. Toward Climate Resilience. 2016. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/attach/2016/06/climate-resilience-framework-and-principles.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Union of Concerned Scientists |title=Toward Climate Resilience |date=June 2016 |url=https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/attach/2016/06/climate-resilience-framework-and-principles.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{unionofconcernedscientists2016toward, author = {{Union of Concerned Scientists}}, title = {{Toward Climate Resilience}}, institution = {Union of Concerned Scientists}, year = {2016}, month = jun, url = {https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/attach/2016/06/climate-resilience-framework-and-principles.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }