Projects
Resilience in Action
See how Resilient Virginia and its partners are putting resilience into practice through time-bound projects that address specific community and statewide needs.
Current Project
Active Grant-Funded & Partner Supported Work
About the Project
CARE is a collaboration across universities, non-profits, and local government partners in Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia (Delmarva).
The project aims to help farmers and their communities deal with floods, droughts, saltwater intrusion, and other weather-related challenges with the goal of helping Extension professionals become more effective partners in building resilience in coastal farming communities.
Project Partners
- Funder: NOAA Climate Resilience Regional Challenge*
- Leads: Virginia Tech, University of Delaware, and University of Maryland Eastern Shore
- Steering Partners: Delaware State University, University of Maryland, Virginia State University, Maryland Sea Grant, Eastern Shore Land Conservancy, Delaware Wild Lands, Mid-Atlantic Black Farmers Caucus, Resilient Virginia, and the Accomack-Northampton Planning District Commission
*This project is made possible through funding from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Climate Resilience Regional Challenge (CRRC).
Goals
- Create a collaborative of Land Grant, local government, community, and nonprofit partners to create a strategic plan for building Extension’s capacity to address resilience in agricultural communities.
- Determine current capacities and programs within Extension related to resilience and identify challenges and opportunities.
- Develop a more complete understanding of community concerns and goals regarding resilience efforts.
- Create an enduring capacity among Extension professionals and rural localities to more effectively engage in resilience building activities.
Activities
Extension Needs Assessment
How do Extension professionals currently address extreme weather in their work? What kinds of support could help them become partners in building agricultural community resilience? We are conducting surveys and interviews to find out.
Community Listening Sessions
What kinds of difficult or extreme weather are farming communities facing? What resources, values, and practices can help them deal with extreme weather? Community members can share their thoughts at the 18 listening sessions we’ll be hosting from 2025-2026.
Capacity Building
What practical steps can farmers, landowners, and community members take to reduce weather risks? We’ll develop factsheets, a website, trainings, and other educational resources that outline realistic solutions for Extension and communities.
Focus Area
Outcomes
- Identify key weather-related challenges that are important to coastal farming communities.
- Greater awareness of resilience-building solutions for farms and rural communities.
- More coordination and collaboration between Extension, non-profit, local government, and community members on resilience building efforts.
- Increased knowledge and confidence about resilience among Extension professionals and agricultural community members.
Learn more about the CARE Project
Past Projects
Completed Projects Showcasing Experience & Impact
Cultivating Rural Vitality in Virginia's Food System (CRRV)
Virginia Energy Resilience Study (VERS)
Environmental Justice Data Project
Lynchburg Rising
A statewide initiative focused on strengthening the resilience and vitality of Virginia’s rural food system.
Resilient Virginia contributed to the initiative through statewide partnership and steering committee participation, helping connect food-system resilience with broader community, economic, and regional resilience priorities.
Resilient Virginia supported the Virginia Energy Resilience Study through stakeholder engagement, community outreach, and resilience planning focused on distributed energy, resilience hubs, and local energy needs.
The project translated technical energy concepts into accessible community conversations, case studies, and practical insights to support local resilience planning and investment.
Working with VCU partners, Resilient Virginia helped examine how severe weather, disaster, and environmental hazards affect historically underserved communities, including communities located near critical infrastructure.
The project combined community and technical data to make disparities more visible and develop information that could support resilience planning, funding, and more equitable decision-making.
Lynchburg Rising engaged residents in historically disinvested Lynchburg neighborhoods to better understand lived experiences with flooding, extreme heat, environmental hazards, and other resilience challenges.
Through community-centered engagement and storytelling, the project helped identify local priorities, elevate resident knowledge, and strengthen connections between communities, organizations, and resilience planning efforts.
2025 – 2026
2024 – 2026
2023 – 2025
2022 – 2023
Food Systems · Rural Resilience · Cross-Sector Collaboration
Energy Resilience · Community Engagement · Technical Assistance
Environmental Justice · Data · Community Resilience
Community Engagement · Environmental Justice · Local Resilience