National Climate Resilience Framework

The White House
Posted on: 11/20/2023 - Updated on: 1/30/2025

Posted by

CAKE Team

Published

Abstract

Although our nation is moving quickly to address the projected risks and impacts of climate change, there is far more work to do in the years ahead. To guide this work, in June 2023 President Biden directed the creation of a first-ever National Climate Resilience Framework to identify key values, priorities, and objectives to help expand and accelerate nationally comprehensive, locally-tailored, and community-driven resilience strategies.

This National Climate Resilience Framework (“the Framework”) makes clear that building a climate-resilient nation will require an all-hands-on-deck effort across all levels of government (State, local, Tribal, and territorial), leaders of all political backgrounds, and the wide range of philanthropic, non-profit, academic, and private sector institutions. The U.S. Government will and must serve as an active, flexible, coordinated, and committed partner with these entities in helping design and implement resilience strategies that meet the vision and needs of every community.

In order to serve in this partner role, the Federal Government will need to have a continued focus on reforming and modernizing Federal programs and policies in ways that strengthen climate resilience – for example, embedding environmental justice into the DNA of Federal departments and agencies, or doubling down on making science, resources, and technologies accessible to everyone. The U.S. Government must also center effective Tribal consultation, respect for sacred sites, and recognition of Tribal sovereignty as important components of climate resilience planning and hazard response.

In addition to reimagining the Federal Government’s role in advancing climate resilience, the Framework also identifies six core objectives—supported by specific actions—that are critical to strengthening the nation’s protections against the impacts of climate change; that make communities safe, healthy, equitable, and economically strong; and that can and should be a focus of climate resilience efforts at all levels:

  • Embed climate resilience into planning and management
  • Increase resilience of the built environment to both acute climate shocks and chronic stressors
  • Mobilize capital, investment, and innovation to advance climate resilience at scale
  • Equip communities with information and resources needed to assess their climate risks and develop the climate resilience solutions most appropriate for them
  • Protect and sustainably manage lands and waters to enhance resilience while providing numerous other benefits
  • Help communities become not only more resilient, but also more safe, healthy, equitable, and economically strong

These objectives—and the specific actions identified to help achieve them—were developed in coordination with resilience experts across the Federal Government. They were further informed by the insights of non-Federal climate resilience stakeholders and recommendations from the U.S. Government Accountability Office4 and the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.

The Framework was designed to function as a foundation for near-term and longer-term climate resilience efforts across the Federal Government, in coordination with non-Federal partners, including through follow-on implementation plans and actions.

The Framework articulates a common definition of resilience and fundamental principles that will guide the Federal Government’s approach to achieving resilience. The Framework then expands on the six core objectives listed above by providing a high-level description of what each objective would entail, an overview of notable Federal investments and initiatives that have supported the objective to date, and an illustrative list of specific opportunities for cross-sectoral action.

 

Citation

National Climate Resilience Framework (2023). The White House.

Affiliated Organizations

The power of the Executive Branch is vested in the President of the United States, who also acts as head of state and Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces. The President is responsible for implementing and enforcing the laws written by Congress and, to that end, appoints the heads of the federal agencies, including the Cabinet. The Vice President is also part of the Executive Branch, ready to assume the Presidency should the need arise.

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