Racial justice in urban climate change governance

U.S. cities face the simultaneous and intertwined challenges of climate change and racial inequality. Racial and spatial segregation in Great Lakes cities generate uneven exposure to current and future flood risks and worsen the economic and health consequences of flooding for BIPOC communities. It is becoming increasingly clear that BIPOC are particularly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. When cities create planning or evaluation tools without acknowledging the presence of institutional and structural racism, climate change adaptation may reinforce existing inequality and preclude transformative change. As our cities undertake the challenge of adapting to climate change, it is critical that these disparities are accounted for. Failing to center racial justice in urban adaptation not only neglects those communities most affected by climate change, it can also produce decisions and investments that exacerbate current inequalities. In this paper we develop a set of five principles for centering racial justice in adaptation planning and policy, focusing specifically on how these apply to efforts to adapt to increasing flood risk due to storms and heavy rain events. We provide examples and highlight useful cases throughout to illustrate these principles in action. We also discuss ways that program and policy evaluation will also need to shift in support of racial justice, and provide opportunities for integrating racial justice into the evaluation process. Truly centering racial justice in urban adaptation will require a mindset change and full institutional reforms in cities. (Co-Authors: Sarah Dobie, University of Michigan, Kirsten Schwarz, University of California, Los Angeles)