Planning for Community Resilience

When disaster strikes, the damage isn’t just physical—it’s social, economic, and deeply uneven. Rising seas, stronger storms, and growing inequality have made resilience planning an urgent priority for communities everywhere. But true resilience goes beyond rebuilding; it means creating places that can adapt, recover, and emerge stronger for everyone who calls them home.

Planning for Community Resilience offers a hands-on approach to integrating hazard mitigation with community development. Drawing from post-hurricane recovery efforts in Galveston, Texas, the authors present a clear process using the Disaster Impacts Model to assess risk—evaluating physical exposure, infrastructure vulnerabilities, and social fragility. The framework helps communities identify where they’re most at risk and how to make smarter, more inclusive planning decisions.

From city planners and elected officials to floodplain managers and citizen advocates, this guide equips local leaders with a practical method for building resilience from the ground up—tailored to local conditions, rooted in equity, and grounded in data. Whether preparing for the next storm or rethinking land use in its aftermath, Planning for Community Resilience is a vital tool for communities seeking to protect lives, strengthen neighborhoods, and plan with long-term vision.