Managing the Climate Crisis

The climate, which had been relatively stable for centuries, is well into a new and dangerous phase. In 2020 there were 22 weather and climate disasters in the United States, which resulted in 262 deaths. Each disaster cost more than a billion dollars to repair. This dangerous trend is continuing with unprecedented heat waves, extended drought, extraordinary wildfire seasons, torrential downpours, and increased coastal and river flooding. Reducing the causes of the changing climate is the urgent global priority, but the country will be living with worsening climate disasters at least until midcentury because of greenhouse emissions already in the atmosphere. How to deal with the changing climate is an urgent national security problem affecting almost everyone.

In Managing the Climate Crisis, design and planning experts Jonathan Barnett and Matthijs Bouw take a practical approach to addressing the inevitable and growing threats from the climate crisis using constructed and nature-based design and engineering and ordinary government programs. They discuss adaptation and preventive measures and illustrate their implementation for seven climate-related threats: flooding along coastlines, river flooding, flash floods from extreme rain events, drought, wildfire, long periods of high heat, and food shortages.

The policies and investments needed to protect lives and property are affordable if they begin now, and are planned and budgeted over the next 30 years. Preventive actions can also be a tremendous opportunity, not only to create jobs, but also to remake cities and landscapes to be better for everyone. Flood defenses can be incorporated into new waterfront parks. The green designs needed to control flash floods can also help shield communities from excessive heat. Combating wildfires can produce healthier forests and generate creative designs for low-ignition landscapes and more fire-resistant buildings. Capturing rainwater can make cities respond to severe weather more naturally, while conserving farmland from erosion and encouraging roof-top greenhouses can safeguard food supplies.

Managing the Climate Crisis is a practical guide to managing the immediate threats from a changing climate while improving the way we live. "
"[Managing the Climate Crisis] melds both into a discussion of adapting human construction to withstand the throes of climate change, and is written by two design and planning experts who examine not just structural choices, but the political policies guiding urban and environmental design....Libraries strong in urban design and planning, climate change analysis, and adaptation for future health and safety will find the practical, wide-ranging approach of Managing the Climate Crisis to be satisfyingly specific."

" "This would be a useful resource for someone deciding where to live and work, and it should be a handbook for municipal planners making short- and long-term decisions....Summing Up: Highly recommended. All readers." "With the climate crisis already at our doorsteps, Barnett and Bouw focus on tools readily available to us as they offer real-world solutions to the world's growing environmental challenges. Their winning approach to problem solving makes wise use of current government programs, tried-and-true nature-based design principles, smart engineering, and solid construction techniques to safeguard communities and offer hope for a more resilient future."---James F. Murley, Chief Resilience Officer, Miami-Dade County, Florida "Using cutting-edge examples, Managing the Climate Crisis offers a structured guide for building resilience. This book puts the costs and benefits of dealing with pressing climate challenges into high relief, and will empower anyone who reads it to make better, bolder decisions to safeguard our collective future."---Lauren N. Sorkin, Executive Director, Resilient Cities Network "This impressive and wide-ranging book provides a compelling set of princip