RCC is a nonprofit whose work is anchored in knowledge gained in the development of the urban resilience movement, bringing together a diverse set of skills across government, civil society and the private sector.
RCC believes that resilience thinking combined with courageous leadership and radical collaboration will make cities stronger, more equitable and ultimately more resilient for current and future generations.
But they also understand the difficulty it takes to change large, complex systems like cities. The change required today comes from cities working overtime to:
PARTNER ACROSS AND THROUGH THE URBAN ECOSYSTEM
Catalytic change in cities requires collective vision and alignment of effort among the wide range of actors required to address urban challenges systemically and to maintain long-term momentum for change. RCC’s work with cities begins with the facilitation of these partnerships, creating common work platforms for government (at all levels), NGOs and community organizations, the business community, anchor service institutions, the philanthropic community, and universities.
OVERCOME THE INNATE OBSTACLES WITHIN CITIES THAT PREVENT IMPACTFUL ACTION
RCC works with cities in two main ways to help them overcome obstacles that so often result in ambitions and critical investments falling by the wayside. First, they help cities create institutional capacity to work across organizational silos and to manage change across political cycles. Second, they advise city governments on how to better use their own resources, such as their budgets, procurement powers, and physical assets, to support their change objectives.
DIRECTLY ADDRESS THE RISKS AND CHRONIC STRESSES THAT CAN IMPEDE ACHIEVEMENT OF EACH CITY’S PRIORITIES AND PROMISE
Cities and urban communities too often avoid their long-term risk exposures and underlying stresses. Doing so often results in fundamental disruption to their work for change. Committing to address chronic stresses and potentially catastrophic exposures can be politically risky, because they are so complex. For most actors in the urban ecosystem, issues like seismic risk or chronic exclusion are beyond the scope of their responsibilities. RCC helps cities learn how to integrate risk reduction, mitigation, and transfer into everyday operations. RCC works with each city’s managers, urbanists and technicians to design de-risking measures and build greater co-benefits into near-term investments.
