The Rockefeller Foundation has kicked off its 2014 100 Resilient Cities Challenge, which aims to help “build resilience to the social, economic, and physical challenges that cities face in an increasingly urbanized world.” Each of the 100 cities selected will receive funding to hire a Chief Resilience Officer and assistance in developing and implementing a resilience strategy.
“We can't predict the next disruption or catastrophe. But we can control how we respond to these challenges. We can adapt to the shocks and stresses of our world and transform them into opportunities for growth,” the 100 Resilient Cities' site reads. While shocks include events like earthquakes, fires and floods, stresses include high unemployment, inefficient public transportation, endemic violence or chronic food and water shortages. The Challenge aims to help cities be better prepared for these adverse events and better able to deliver basic services in both good and bad times to all members of the population.
Learn more about the Challenge after the break…
Cities, defined as a legal governmental entity with a population of over 50,000, can apply through their municipal governments. In the application process, cities should articulate their greatest vulnerabilities and show how they aim to comprehensively build resilience. Cities must also show that their plans include “the engagement and voice of the city’s poor and vulnerable.”
Last December the Rockefeller Foundation announced the first 33 cities selected, including Medellín, Colombia, New York City, and Rotterdam, Netherlands.
The deadline to apply is September 10. Learn more on the 100 Resilient Cities website.
