The Issue

We are paying the price of climate change – through power outages, health and safety risks, flood damage and repairs, rising insurance premiums, and limits on where and how we can live.

In the United States, these costs fall disproportionately on underserved and historically marginalized communities. These communities are least equipped to prepare for or recover from heat waves, poor air quality and flooding. In the New York – New Jersey region alone, over one million people live in neighborhoods shaped by racist urban planning and lending policies such as redlining, placing them in flood and heat-prone areas with limited resources to respond.

Many of these same communities were hit hardest by Hurricanes Sandy and Ida and continue to face compounding health, social, and economic crises.

As climate impacts accelerate, the need for equitable, community-driven solutions is urgent. Leadership must come from those most affected – and from organizations like Waterfront Alliance that are already committed to supporting them.

Our Approach

Waterfront Alliance’s Climate Informed Communities (CIC) initiative centers frontline leadership and collaboration to preparing our region for the impacts of climate change – including flooding, extreme heat, and poor air quality – while ensuring a more just and sustainable future.

• We support community leaders — from housing advocates to food justice organizers, immigration service providers, and more — who are working directly with neighborhoods facing climate hazards. These leaders bring deep knowledge of local needs and are essential to shaping effective, inclusive climate strategies.
• We work in collaboration with local, city, and state organizations and agencies to strengthen flood preparedness and resilience planning. By building bridges across sectors, we help ensure that communities have access to the tools, resources, and partnerships they need.
• We take a creative approach to outreach and engagement, finding new ways to bring climate awareness and resources to communities — whether through public art, storytelling, youth education, or neighborhood events.
• We support large-scale infrastructure engagement efforts, ensuring that public meetings and planning processes include preparedness resources and are accessible to those most impacted.
• We also leverage our other programs, including the Rise to Resilience Coalition (R2R) and Estuary Explorers, to drive systemic change. These programs help address key climate hazards and build long-term capacity for resilience through education, advocacy, and community engagement.

Together, these efforts form a holistic strategy to prepare communities for climate risks while advancing equity, justice, and sustainability.