Hurricane Tips From Cuba

Bangladesh has become a leader in disaster preparedness through its strategy of training thousands of community members to give early warnings on cyclones and other disasters. This approach has saved thousands of lives and has become a model for other countries. Now the country is training Rohingya refugees living in Bangladeshi camps after fleeing persecution in Myanmar to do similar work as they face threats of widespread damage due to cyclones.

After being hit by two natural disasters in one year, cities, Indigenous tribes, and government agencies in Whatcom County on the Nooksack River are working together to create a new plan to deal with flood risk and salmon restoration. The Floodplain Integrated Planning team is overcoming distrust among its partners to build a more holistic plan that incorporates tested solutions like fish-friendly floodgates, levee repairs, and property buyouts to remove homes that will continue to be flooded in the future.

Through the Achieving Sustainability Through Education and Economic Development Solutions (ASEEDS) Creek Rangers program, teens and community leaders are raising awareness of the effects of climate change in their small Mississippi town. They’ve fixed their community’s drainage system to help mitigate floods that have impacted the area for years. While some people were skeptical of their efforts, they’ve been able to work with pastors and other people to show how climate change is already impacting them.

Neighbors around the country are forming grassroots community groups to prepare for, and respond to, extreme weather and disasters. These groups organize aid and supplies, participate in reconstruction, and help others find shelter amidst the storms.

A grassroots campaign to build out a river walk with walkable commercial and residential districts boosted economic development while improving flood control in San Antonio, Texas.

The mutual-aid group Occupy Sandy helped New York City residents affected by Superstorm Sandy. Using and expanding the network of people created by Occupy Wall Street, 60,000 volunteers distributed supplies, created a map of relief locations, and organized helping hands wherever necessary.

The community-formed Igbajo Development Association has spent years planting 50,000 trees to help protect the community from severe weather and flooding.

Women in villages throughout India and Bangladesh are “silent climate warriors” who plant mangrove trees as a way to mitigate the effects of rising waters. While it’s not always easy to convince their family members that they should do this, they have been able to grow an additional 2,000 acres of mangroves that can reduce the speed of waves and capture carbon dioxide. They also earn income, about $430 a year, for growing and planting saplings.

La Maraña, a nonprofit in Puerto Rico, created a model for how communities could recover from disasters like the devastation caused by Hurricane Maria in 2017. By including community voices in the design and planning process of recovery projects — which can focus on water, food, energy, roads, communication, or security — the organization hopes the projects are more likely to succeed and promote longterm community civic engagement.

Working toward environmental justice takes organizing on the community level. In Detroit, the Women of Empowerment promote resilience against the adverse effects of climate change on the city’s east side by spearheading projects that range from legal cases to the installation of solar panels. The group also partners with local nonprofits like the Eastside Community Network and Heatwaves Housing and Health (HHH), to collect data that can inform climate-resilient city planning.