Rotterdam, a port city once at the center of trade and commerce, is now threatened by climate change. The city has responded to this threat by totally transforming itself into a hub for sustainable design. It embraces crazy, environmentally friendly solutions. From a floating dairy farm to a home enclosed in a greenhouse to basketball courts that soak up rainwater, Rotterdam has established itself as a leader in sustainable urban design. By 2025, the city plans to be completely climate-proof.

Strong building codes and a culture of energy innovation with roots in California’s cannabis country have quietly made Sacramento and its surrounding cities a model for advanced building practices that could slow its worst effects.

Passive houses can generate more energy than they consume but are expensive to build. Non-profits across the nation are getting low income families into these types of renewable homes with state subsidies and volunteer work.

The national affordable housing crisis is creating challenges for rural areas. Low-income residents in rural towns struggle to find quality, affordable housing, and government subsidies for housing have decreased in recent years. However, two examples show potential. In Elkins, West Virginia, the Randolph Housing Authority helps people buy affordable homes that are funded by the USDA rural development division and built by a youth training program. In Woodland, California, agricultural workers are moving to Spring Lake, a growing community whose energy usage is net-zero.