Case Studies | U.S. Climate Resilience Toolkit

Communities, businesses, and individuals are taking action to document their vulnerabilities and build resilience to climate-related impacts. Click dots on the map to preview case studies, or browse stories below the map. Use the drop-down menus above to find stories of interest. To expand your results, click the Clear Filters link.

A Community Works Together to Reduce Damages from Flooding

The Village of Walton, New York worked with their Soil and Water Conservation District to engage community members in decisions about flooding in their community. The Village eventually took action to restore portions of the floodplain to reduce flooding.

The dock at China Champ, San Rafael, California

A Road-Flooding Fix for a California State Park

Flooding from rain and extreme high tides often leaves the road to San Francisco's China Camp State Park inaccessible. So a diverse group of stakeholders, with support from NOAA’s Science Collaborative team, proposed raising the road.

Panorama of downtown Asheville, North Carolina

Asheville Makes a Plan for Climate Resilience

This western North Carolina city is using the Steps to Resilience to proactively plan for expected climate change impacts.

City of Fayetteville’s Watershed Master Program Screenshot

City of Fayetteville’s Watershed Master Plan

In order to better assess the severity of city-wide floods and create flood mitigation solutions, Fayetteville, North Carolina’s city officials embarked on a $13 million Watershed Master Plan program in 2019.

Destruction to the Norwalk Calf Pasture Pier caused by Hurricane Sandy

Climate Preparedness Workshops Provide a Head Start Toward Resilience

After a series of extreme weather events, the City of Bridgeport, Connecticut, looked for ways to prepare for future storms. Their planning process had just started when they got hit again...

A view of the sea from the dock behind the dunes.

Community-Led Resilience Program Leads to Shovel-Ready Projects

Learn how the North Carolina Division of Coastal Management is helping communities build their resilience to coastal flood hazards through an incentive-based program that provides planning and funding for nature-based projects.

Greening Boston: The Climate Change Preparedness and Resiliency Checklist

To build the city's resilience, Boston requires that new buildings and renovation projects follow best practices for climate change adaptation.

Home Elevation Program Helps Demystify The Process

Partners in the Keyswide Home Elevation Education Project developed trainings and informational materials to demystify the process and increase knowledge on home elevation. Materials help answer homeowners' and contractors' questions about costs, methods, barriers, permitting, duration, and financing.

How New Battery Capacity Helped California Avoid Another Blackout

New battery capacity in the form of battery energy storage (BES) units was a key difference-maker that contributed, along with demand response, to preventing blackouts during California’s extreme heatwave in September 2022.

In the Dark of Monday Morning: Waves Inundate a Pacific Island Community

People who live on low-lying islands are reminded daily of the threat they face from coastal flooding. An unexpected disaster prompted a community in the Republic of the Marshall Islands to consider how to notify people of potential events and help them know how to respond.

Colorado National Guardsmen respond to floods in Boulder County, Colorado, on September 12, 2013

It Was a Dark and Stormy Night: Extreme Weather Leads to Collaboration in Boulder

The city charts its path to resilience by focusing on extreme weather and interdepartmental collaboration.

Mandeville, Louisiana: A City that Stays Afloat by Promoting Elevations

The City of Mandeville, located in St. Tammany Parish, decided to commit to helping residents escape troublesome flood waters. Finally tiring of the constant issue of a repeated damage-repair cycle, city officials decided to act by adopting high regulatory standards for the elevation of homes and businesses.