Boulder County Localization and Equity Mapping
Client:
Boulder County
Location:
Boulder, CO
Project Type:
Climate Resilience
Market Type:
State & Local Government
Key Takeaways
Ensuring Equity In Adaptation
Climate action plans require analysis of socio-economics to help ensure that equitable adaptation is achieved.
Local Focus For Climate Change
Individuals need clear visualizations to understand how climate change becomes personal and actionable.
Adaptive Capacity Is The New Equity
Each neighborhood has unique adaptive capacity including the ability to adapt and implement recommendations.
Mapping Neighborhood-level Climate Impacts and Adaptation
The true cost of environmental changes extends beyond physical impacts on infrastructure. Public health, equity and the ability to adapt are crucial elements. Additionally, understanding and addressing these changes at the neighborhood level is essential for grasping local effects and motivating local efforts. Localizing and emphasizing equity brings broader environmental projections down to neighborhood-specific impacts.
Resilient Analytics was the lead consultant in this effort, tasked with creating a map interface that conveyed the current conditions in each neighborhood, capacity of the neighborhood to adapt, climate projections, risk to each neighborhood, risks to each sector and adaptation priorities. Coordination between the county and cities was critical for long-term planning and success. Resilient Analytics developed a new GIS interface, creating an interactive environment that allowed county officials to access and utilize the extensive data in the new system.
Additionally, new impact functions were developed to localize individual impacts to include equity and adaptive capacity. The GIS-based platform is now the basis for all government levels to obtain localized impact analysis.
Solutions
Proactively assessing, planning for and adapting to major weather events and rising temperatures is essential for long-term sustainability. Stanley Consultants is leveraging Resilient Analytics to deliver data-driven solutions that prioritize human safety, safeguard communities and protect capital investments.
