Impact Assessment, Inc. developed and facilitated three workshops for local government leaders on integrating community input into their Climate Hazard and Mitigation Plans. The workshops were designed to help Association of Bay Area Governments members, who represent city and county governments in nine San Francisco Bay Area counties, develop outreach strategies to solicit participation in their planning processes. Climate Hazard and Mitigation Plans address issues such as earthquakes, floods, landslides, tsunamis, drought, wildfire, and extreme heat. We shared best practices that included strategies to reach vulnerable populations, building trust by engaging community leaders and organizers, cultural humility, and making climate and hazard information relevant to the lives of residents. At each workshop we invited a local non-profit agency that works with vulnerable populations or communities disproportionately impacted by environmental hazards, to share their perspective on why it is important to engage hard to reach communities.

Workshop Slides on Community Engagement for the Association of Bay Area Governments Resiliency Program