The 10 locations on which the Resilient by Design competition will focus will be selected from among some 30 Bay Area places identified as highly vulnerable to flooding and rising sea levels. The competing design teams’ adaptation and protection strategies will serve as test cases for implementing tangible solutions around the Bay Area. Teams will tap into the wealth of local knowledge and resources communities already have accumulated. From there, they will develop innovative design solutions — from strengthening natural barriers to constructing new infrastructure. Ideally, these solutions can be implemented within the next few years, will provide other community benefits and can be replicated in other Bay Area locations. Each project must bring multiple benefits to these communities and the region while protecting vulnerable populations, enhancing the natural environment and bolstering critical infrastructure.
Bay Area: Resilient by Design will be divided into two phases: in the first phase, teams will participate in a three-month exploratory research and community engagement period to develop initial design concepts for specific sites. Teams will organically form themselves and be comprised of applicants from around the world. Phase two of the challenge will be a collaborative five-month intensive design phase with teams working in partnership with residents, businesses, community-based organizations and political leaders to develop more detailed, replicable and implementable infrastructure projects.
Bay Area: Resilient by Design also will forge close ties with The Rockefeller Foundation’s 100 Resilient Cities network, which is seeking to help 100 cities build resilience to thrive in the face of 21st-Century challenges. Home to three cities in the 100 Resilient Cities Network, the Bay Area already is working to identify solutions to the region’s challenges. In 2016, Oakland, Berkeley and San Francisco released resilience strategies, each of which cited climate change as one of many stresses that — if not addressed — could put the region in jeopardy.
Photo credit: Myles Boisen