Building climate resilient communities: Living within the Earth’s carrying capacity

This report discusses how communities across Canada are presently experiencing about $2B per year in damages from severe weather and residents continue to experience adverse health outcomes from climate change. There is evidence that this is related to insufficient efforts towards adapting to a warming climate.

As warming is projected to continue at the same rate for at least another 3 decades with increases in the frequency and severity of extreme events, there is an increased need for communities to build resilience to reduce impacts from disasters related to climate change. Some provinces and communities have begun planning for adaptation to climate change, but there is need for more action.

Most adaptive actions take place during recovery from large loss events. It is important that actions to improve climate resilience become a higher priority for governments and society. Efforts must move beyond high level planning to proactive risk reduction actions, across Canadian communities.