What is Climate-Resilient Infrastructure?

Written By Teacher: Teresa Pettitt-Kenney

Hi there! My name is Teresa and I just finished my Bachelor's degree in Environmental Science and am excited to pursue environmental education in the future! I am extremely passionate about climate change, equitable climate action, and how education can work to address these issues. 

Investigating climate-resilient infrastructure can be an exciting way to engage your students in discussions about climate-related issues. Climate-resilient infrastructure is a positive advancement in addressing climate change. Ignite hope in your students by highlighting solutions as much as impacts, using relevant and interactive resources. Use community-building lesson plans to highlight building solutions together, or showcase ways communities have adapted to overcome climate change impacts. 

Written By: MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative

The MIT Climate Change Engagement Program, a part of MIT Climate HQ, provides the public with nonpartisan, easy-to-understand, and scientifically-grounded information on climate change and its solutions.

What does resilience look like?
There are three main aspects of climate resilience: preparation, adaptation, and recovery.
Preparation includes building structures to withstand significant stresses, like high winds and powerful tremors, while sustaining minimal damage. Some buildings need only small changes to become climate-resilient, like applying storm shutters or fastening shelves. Others will need fundamental changes, like elevating the structure off the ground, bracing structural elements, or switching to fireproof materials. And some communities will need new construction, like concrete seawalls and levees to protect from stronger hurricanes.

Preparation also means communicating hazard risks to residents, so they know how to shelter or evacuate when disasters strike. Communications can include hazard maps, text alerts, or evacuation routes. In a diverse country like the United States, these messages must be communicated in many languages.

Adaptation recognizes that hazard risks change—especially on a warming planet—and that we need flexible responses. For instance, zoning laws (the restrictions on where structures can be built) and building codes (the standards to which structures are built) need to be continuously updated to reflect climate projections. Older homes must also be retrofitted to ensure they meet the highest construction standards.

Finally, communities must make plans and reserve resources for recovery. To be effective, recovery must be both complete and rapid.