Philadelphia launches toolkit to help neighborhoods prepare for climate risks
Philadelphia has launched an online tool designed to help residents prepare for extreme weather and build neighborhood resilience, using community feedback to guide local climate planning.
The Philadelphia Office of Sustainability announced the Community Climate Resilience Toolkit on Wednesday, a free resource that provides educational materials, meeting guides and activities to help residents discuss climate risks and develop plans together.
The toolkit addresses hazards including extreme heat, flooding, storms, poor air quality, drought and winter weather conditions. It also includes information about city services, emergency resources and actions residents can take to protect their communities. Over 400 residents helped shape the resource, which was developed with technology companies Hinge Collective and Creative Praxis, as well as the city’s planning districts.
“A key piece of being prepared starts with relationships and knowledge-sharing to build community resilience,” Abby Sullivan, chief resilience officer for the city, said of the initiative, which stemmed from feedback collected for an update to Philadelphia’s Climate Resilience Plan. “Our job was to listen and build something that responds to that.”
The new online resource uses the “train-the-trainer” approach, giving residents instructions for hosting neighborhood gatherings, such as presentation slides, participant workbooks, facilitation tips and guidance for navigating difficult climate conversations. It also connects community leaders with organizations and subject matter experts across city departments. By providing communities with materials to organize locally, Philadelphia aims to turn climate education into neighborhood-level planning before disasters strike.
The city’s updated Climate Resilience Plan, scheduled for release in 2027, will incorporate recent climate data and feedback from residents, city agencies and sector leaders to establish goals, action items and policies for protecting Philadelphians from climate impacts.
“I’ve spent my whole life believing that a neighborhood without a plan will be planned for. Even planning for the weather is important in neighborhoods that have issues with flooding and heat resilience,” Pastor Tyrone Williams, who works with community organization Strawberry Mansion CDC, said of the resource. “This toolkit puts the power to find help in the hands of residents who previously didn’t know where to look; now, there is a toolkit that can assist them during extreme weather events.”
The toolkit builds on the city’s new flood monitoring platform, launched in May by the Philadelphia Office of Emergency Management, which provides real-time information to residents of some of the city’s most flood-prone neighborhoods. The new system allows residents and businesses to track rainfall, water levels and flood risks. The platform also includes live camera feeds from flood-prone areas, helping residents determine whether roads are safe or if protective measures are needed before storms intensify.
