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Sustainability and Resilience

Home » Community Action » Effective and Informed Leadership » Sustainability and Resilience

Sustainability and Resilience

Home » Community Action » Effective and Informed Leadership » Sustainability and Resilience

Sustainability and ResilienceThe National League of Cities’ Sustainability and Resilience initiative supports and celebrates city-led sustainability and resilience efforts through Local Solar Energy Leadership and Leadership in Community Resilience.

NLC supports local solar energy leadership through a partnership with SolSmart. SolSmart is a solar energy designation and technical assistance program funded by the U.S. Department of Energy that helps prepare communities for the solar energy transition at the local level. SolSmart’s technical assistance comes at no cost from a team of national experts that work with communities to identify local priorities and strategies to help make solar energy more affordable and accessible for residents and businesses. Successful communities are awarded the prestigious designation of SolSmart Bronze, Silver, or Gold. This page directs browsers to SolSmart’s website, where they can request a consultation for their community.

Another way the NLC supports resilience framework is through their partnership with the Resilient Cities Network that gets input from a global network of Chief Resilience Officers. The Leadership in Community Resilience (LCR) grant program supports and enhances local capacity among elected leaders and staff, communities, and community-based organizations as they pursue coordinated climate resilience efforts.

The Resilient Cities Network for 2021 includes eight major cities: Alton, Texas; Arlington; Massachusetts; Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Dubuque, Iowa; Flagstaff, Arizona; Portsmouth, New Hampshire; Raleigh, North Carolina; and Spokane, Washington. The NLC offers grants to cities that want to pursue coordinated climate resilience efforts and gives each city $10,000 in direct financial support. The cities also receive technical assistance and advisory services from NLC staff and partners to help them meet community-specific resiliency goals.

This page also includes information about past LCR Grantees so readers can learn about the success of the LCR grant program.

Click here for more information.

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The Resilience Calendar

  • Managing Forests as Habitat in a Changing World
    Date: September 16, 2025
    Location: Virtual

    This 12-part monthly webinar series will feature interactive panel discussions that explore shifting impacts on forest habitats and adaptation options for natural resources management. Panels will represent a diversity of scientists and natural resource…

  • Community Conversations for Appalachian Regional Commission’s New Strategic Plan
    Date: September 17, 2025
    Location: Virtual

    Every five years, ARC works with its federal, state and community partners on a strategic plan that guides our investments throughout Appalachia’s 13-state, 423-county region. Their current strategic plan expires next year, so…

  • Sovereign Nations of Virginia Conference: Ancestral Wisdom Guides Today’s Paths; Indigenous Conservation and Rights of Nature
    Date: September 18, 2025
    Location: Virginia Crossings Hotel & Conference Center, Tapestry Collection by Hilton, 1000 Virginia Center Pkwy, Glen Allen, VA 23059, USA

    The purpose of the conference is to increase the understanding of tribal sovereignty and to share best practices in working with tribes for the good of all citizens of the Commonwealth of Virginia. The 2025…

  • Purchasing Under FEMA Awards Training: Introduction
    Date: September 23, 2025
    Location: Virtual

    This training provides an overview of the federal procurement under grants rules for recipients and subrecipients when purchasing under a FEMA grant. This training is appropriate for FEMA award recipients and subrecipients, including: state,…

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Couldn’t attend every session at the recent Resilient Virginia Conference — or weren’t able to attend at all? You’re not alone—and we’ve got you covered.

Resilient Virginia is planning a series of post-conference sessions that will revisit the most in-demand topics from the conference—and the first three are happening soon!

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Where Resilience Meets Reality: Highlights from the 2025 Resilient Virginia Conference

Over 200 leaders, experts, and community advocates gathered at James Madison University this July for the 2025 Resilient Virginia Conference, themed “Moving Virginia Forward.” The two-day event offered a powerful mix of strategic insights, grassroots innovation, and hands-on learning—from climate-smart infrastructure and equity-driven planning to immersive experiences like the Science on a Sphere and FIRST Chesapeake’s “Robot Petting Zoo.”

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