Climate & Resilience


  • Sustainable glass office building with trees for reducing carbon dioxide.
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    Fahroni via Getty Images
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    How to address a key building decarbonization barrier: the ‘split incentive gap’

    While landlords and developers foot the bill for efficiency upgrades, tenants benefit from lower energy costs. A Sustainable Markets Initiative road map outlines policies and other ways to address the mismatch.

    By Nish Amarnath • Oct. 11, 2024
  • Vegetation on the roof of a bus shelter. On the street below is a transit bus.
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    Retrieved from City of Boston.
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    Green roofs on bus shelters are Boston’s latest climate resilience move

    It's the nation’s largest single installation of green roofs on bus shelters, the city says. It hopes the infrastructure will ease stress on Boston’s aging drainage system.

    By Oct. 11, 2024
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    jamesteohart via Getty Images
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    Trendline

    Top 5 stories from Smart Cities Dive

    From worsening climate change to a shifting transportation landscape and the housing affordability crisis, cities have their work cut out for them.

    By Smart Cities Dive staff
  • Aerial shot of people inside a large indoor space. People sit on folding chairs and lay on mats on the floor.
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    Nathan Howard via Getty Images
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    Gas utility faces climate deception lawsuit by Oregon county

    It's the first time a U.S. community has sued a gas utility for allegedly deceiving the public about the climate impacts of fossil fuels, advocates say.

    By Oct. 10, 2024
  • People use buckets to throw floodwater out the windows of a house surrounded by flooding.
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    Megan Varner via Getty Images
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    Bill aims to help disaster-struck communities excluded from federal relief

    The bipartisan proposal would give more communities access to federal dollars in the wake of increasing natural disasters.

    By Oct. 9, 2024
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    Retrieved from Pixabay.
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    EPA requires lead pipes to be replaced nationwide within 10 years

    The landmark rule imposes the strictest limits on lead in drinking water since federal standards were set 30 years ago.

    By Julie Strupp • Oct. 8, 2024
  • A female engineer squats down to inspect and control the cooling system of a large factory air conditioner
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    Panupong Piewkleng via Getty Images
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    Skills gap looms for energy efficiency jobs tied to net-zero emission goals: IEA

    Dialogue among policymakers, employers and labor unions will play a critical role in training workers for skills relevant to the jobs being offered, a new International Energy Agency report says.

    By Nish Amarnath • Oct. 4, 2024
  • City skyline behind trees and homes.
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    benedek via Getty Images
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    What’s the value of a city’s nature? San Antonio pilots tool to find out.

    Designed by a Stanford University-based group, the tool shows how land use changes could impact carbon sequestration, urban cooling and residents’ access to nature. More cities may eventually get access.

    By Oct. 3, 2024
  • A pile of election materials on the ground, with a truck in the background, in Delaware County, Pennsylvania.
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    Permission granted by Delaware County Public Relations
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    How cities can handle election waste

    Local governments are preparing to deal with high volumes of yard signs, mailers and campaign material as the fall election season ramps up. Programs in Pennsylvania, Texas, Florida and elsewhere encourage recycling and reuse.

    By Adina Solomon • Oct. 2, 2024
  • Building debris falling into a river. Other houses still stand by the river.
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    Sean Rayford via Getty Images
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    FEMA’s push for resilience in building codes gets scrutiny in House hearing

    Emergency managers touted the cost-effectiveness of more resilient buildings, but keeping up with the latest codes is a struggle for some local governments and homebuilders.

    By Oct. 2, 2024
  • Power crews work on the lines after Hurricane Helene
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    Joe Raedle/Getty Images via Getty Images
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    1.6M customers still without power after Helene; some local grids must ‘be completely rebuilt’

    Multiple utilities say they will need to completely rebuild, rather than repair, electric systems in the hardest-hit areas. 

    By Robert Walton • Oct. 1, 2024
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    rarrarorro via Getty Images
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    2025’s top smart city conferences

    Smart city technology, housing, climate action, road safety and more will take center stage at events already announced for next year.

    By , Oct. 1, 2024
  • Aerial shot of buildings on a sunny day
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    Alex Potemkin via Getty Images
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    Affordable multifamily housing owners would get decarbonization help in NYC proposal

    Building owners purchasing “offset certificates” to help meet Local Law 97’s greenhouse gas emissions-reduction requirements would pay into the fund.

    By Sept. 30, 2024
  • Ali Zaidi, national climate advisor to Joe Biden, speaking at Climate Week
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    Lamar Johnson/Smart Cities Dive
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    Now is the time to ‘lean into’ decarbonizing transportation sector: Biden climate advisor

    Reducing transportation emissions represents a “massive public health opportunity,” Ali Zaidi, a national climate policy advisor for the Biden administration, said at Climate Week NYC.

    By Lamar Johnson • Sept. 30, 2024
  • An electric vehicle at a Tesla EV charging station.
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    Justin Sullivan via Getty Images
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    Customer satisfaction with public EV charging is improving: JD Power

    Electric vehicle owners are particularly satisfied with the speed of public fast chargers. But public charging infrastructure isn’t keeping up with the number of EVs in service, a J.D. Power executive said.

    By Kalena Thomhave • Sept. 27, 2024
  • A person sits at a table in front of a large piece of equipment. On the table are an open plastic water bottle and a plastic bag.
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    Justin Sullivan via Getty Images
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    HUD extreme heat playbook focuses on increasing resilience in housing

    The guidance identifies potential federal funding sources and example projects that it says could work elsewhere across the country.

    By Sept. 27, 2024
  • A person drops off beverage containers at a recycling center.
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    Megan Quinn/Smart Cities Dive
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    San Francisco’s BottleBank aims to boost recycling in a state with limited container deposit options

    California is set to invest millions in innovations meant to make its container deposit return system operate more efficiently. BottleBank shares lessons from its first two years in operation as a mobile bag drop program.

    By Megan Quinn • Sept. 26, 2024
  • Miami-Dade County, Florida, postpones vote on new incinerator due to siting concerns

    The decision should not be taken lightly given the history of a waste incinerator that polluted one neighborhood for decades, a commissioner said. 

    By Jacob Wallace • Sept. 24, 2024
  • A man in a red uniform repairing a heat pump.
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    welcomia via Getty Images
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    Seattle boosts electric heat pump incentives with goal to eliminate oil-heated homes

    With the city's new rebate, income-qualified households can access up to $8,000 each to switch from oil heat to an electric heat pump.

    By Sept. 24, 2024
  • An adult holding a rake and a child stand in floodwaters outside a home.
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    Brandon Bell via Getty Images
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    NOAA, Climate Mayors ink agreement to bring more science, data tools to communities

    The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will ensure the mayors can access the latest climate information, while Climate Mayors will contribute to NOAA case studies on resilience. 

    By Sept. 23, 2024
  • A person in a suit stands in front of a crowd of people holding signs that say "Trump 2024" and "Road to Victory."
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    Scott Olson via Getty Images
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    How a 2nd Trump administration could ‘jeopardize’ Inflation Reduction Act climate funds

    If elected, could Donald Trump claw back or withhold funds from communities? Experts from Columbia University’s Sabin Center for Climate Change Law offer insight.

    By Sept. 19, 2024
  • An aerial rendering of the expansion project at the north end of Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport's Terminal 2
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    Courtesy of Metropolitan Airports Commission and Miller Dunwiddie
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    Minneapolis airport unveils plans for geothermal heating, rainwater harvesting in $263M expansion

    The terminal expansion effort will reduce 56% of water utility use, 19% of overall heating and cooling energy demand and 62% of exterior lighting energy demand, the airport commission said.

    By Brian Martucci • Sept. 19, 2024
  • A rendering of a flagship charging station co-branded by EVgo and GM Energy.
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    Courtesy of General Motors
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    GM, EVgo plan 400 EV charging stations in US metro areas

    Most flagship stations are expected to feature up to 20 stalls, but some select sites will offer significantly more chargers. 

    By Eric Walz • Sept. 18, 2024
  • A person in a button down shirt and jacket stands in front of a bridge and city skyline.
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    Permission granted by Steve Zylius of University of California, Irvine
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    In a sea of flood-risk data, how can cities know which information to use?

    A Los Angeles County debate spotlights the uncertainty of climate-risk models. Experts weigh in on best practices for local leaders.

    By Sept. 17, 2024
  • Aerial shot of city buildings
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    Art Wager via Getty Images
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    DOE spurs new building energy codes with another $90M

    Construction-heavy states that lack the latest energy-efficiency codes are among the focus areas for this round of federal funding, a U.S. Department of Energy official said.

    By Sept. 16, 2024
  • The flag of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency hangs outside the agency building in Washington, D.C.
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    Justin Sullivan via Getty Images
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    Want federal funds for climate-resilient projects? The EPA’s new website aims to help.

    The resource comes as experts voice concerns about communities struggling to navigate complex, often overlapping federal funding programs.

    By Sept. 12, 2024