Call for Urgent Action to Promote Disaster Resilience and Climate Change Adaptation 

Given the fact that our planet is increasingly facing severe effects from climate change, disaster resilience and adaptation strategies need to be very robust. I, as a concerned citizen, have seen firsthand the devastation that climate-related disasters leave in communities: families lose homes, livelihoods are destroyed, and lives are forever changed. It is time for decisive action that builds up the resilience of local and national governments and protects their vulnerable populations from the worse consequences of climate change.

Extreme weather events, such as floods, hurricanes, and wildfires, are becoming more frequent and worse. Catastrophes affect communities almost everywhere on the globe. At home, we see unprecedented levels of destruction from these disasters; some are still recovering from the last disaster, while others are bracing for the next. In the past, communities have had time to rebuild between events; climate change has dramatically shortened those cycles, leaving people exposed and insufficiently prepared.

Although trends have occurred positively across these fronts, they are almost miserably insufficient to enable our disaster preparedness and climate adaptation strategies. If the initial conditions and preparedness at the infrastructure level, provision of early warning systems, and community education are not met, society leaves the communities highly vulnerable to the harmful impacts of climate change.

In my own community, for example, I have seen neighbors struggle to rebuild after floods and storm surges; or neighbors who cannot afford to relocate to higher ground and safer areas. In signing this petition, we call on our local leaders and national leaders to take the necessary actions to enhance preparedness systems against disaster, provide funding that would strengthen adaption programs, and help secure our most vulnerable constituents from the impacts of climate change.