Climate Ready Neighborhoods

Cool Davis DEVA EV/PV Home Tour Garage Workshop in 2018

Cool Davis Neighborhood activities have been plentiful over the years.  For the past 15 years, Cool Davis has brought programs to different neighborhoods, worked with neighborhood partners, and promoted various aspects of sustainable living at neighborhood level.  Since the beginning of our work in Davis, we have connected with neighbors to support their unique work and projects, showing up, promoting activities, and recognizing special efforts and leaders. As we move forward in this changing and volatile world, local activities that connect and strengthen relationships are even more important.  What we have learned from these experiences, people, and places is invaluable in our work today as we deepen our commitment to what we call Climate Ready Neighborhoods.  This spring, we are planning our programming to show up and connect at neighborhood level.

Climate Ready Neighborhoods are communities in a particular geographic area that examine individual, household, and neighborhood strengths and vulnerabilities as they relate to climate change impacts— including extreme weather, dangerous air quality, and utility outages.

It is predicted that by the end of the century, California’s Central Valley will see an average temperature increase of over 10 degrees in the summer, more frequent severe weather events, and an increased risk of wildfires, floods, and other climate-related threats (California’s Fourth Climate Change Assessment, 2018). It is crucial our community is prepared to overcome the mounting challenges expected in the next decades. Therefore, the purpose of Climate Ready Neighborhoods is to work with community members to identify and address neighborhood vulnerabilities and needs related to climate resilience.

Climate Ready Neighborhood is a collaborative project aimed at equipping neighbors with the resources and services they need in order to adapt to the changing climate.  Cool Davis and its partners recommend a variety of sustainable actions, such as healthy tree canopies, drought-tolerant landscaping, home energy efficiency improvements and upgrades, responsible consumption, sustainable transportation, and more. Benefits include increased community engagement in climate change adaptation strategies while working to reduce our community’s greenhouse gas emissions. By focusing at the neighborhood level, entire blocks will be ready to persevere against threats to our local environment.

Climate Ready Neighborhood Events

Partners like Tree Davis have their own expertise and emphasis on  educating and engaging community members in planting and caring for Climate Ready Trees and Landscapes.  The April 5th Arbor Day Celebration hosted by Tree Davis and the City of Davis will be held in a neighborhood – this year at Robert Arneson Park in Wildhorse.  Neighbors are encouraged to come celebrate Arbor Day and share their neighborhood tree and landscape ideas and challenges.  Other community groups and Cool Davis will also be on site to promote different aspects of sustainable living.

Cool Davis partners contribute expertise in transportation and home energy retrofits to households.  This spring, both Cool Davis’ Make A Plan (for your Clean Energy Home) Workshop and the Davis Electric Vehicle Association/Ride Cool Transportation Fair will also be held on site in the Wildhorse, Green Meadows, and Buena Vida neighborhoods.  Stay tuned for those announcements later in April!

We also note this neighborhood focus growing at the local and state levels:

  • Cool Davis is lucky to host two fellows this year in the new AmeriCorps program, Neighbor to Neighbor (N2N). N2N fellows serve their community by developing programs that build the capacity of nonprofits and government agencies (Partner Sites) to build thriving, connected, and resilient neighborhoods that support each other through challenges, especially loneliness and social isolation.
  • The Yolo County Office of Emergency Services is working on some new programming to encourage and strengthen neighborhood emergency preparedness with their READY program. We will see this new programming and special dialogue sessions launching this spring and summer. Cool Davis, along with many other community organizations, will be helping to spread the word!

As we come together for the Arbor Day Celebration, it serves as a great reminder that we all have a role to play in creating a more resilient and sustainable future. With Climate Ready Neighborhoods, we can take tangible steps toward protecting our environment and building stronger, more adaptive communities. Together, we can ensure Davis and Yolo County continue to be vibrant, sustainable places to live for generations to come.

A FEW LINKS TO COOL DAVIS NEIGHBORHOOD STORIES AND ACTIVITIES: