Higher Education Institutions: Partners in Social & Economic Community Resilience

This webinar is is brought to you by the Higher Education Associations Sustainability Consortium (HEASC) with support from Second Nature and the American Society of Adaptation Professionals (ASAP).

There is an urgent need for higher education to address issues of climate adaptation specifically and resilience readiness generally. Higher education needs to prepare its own campuses and communities, and also has an important role to play partnering with  communities locally and around the globe to build resilience, especially those communities whose populations are most vulnerable. Higher education institutions and associations have a unique and important opportunity to help higher education create more climate adaptation and resilience readiness within our sector and within human societies across the country and the globe.

The adaptive and resilient higher education institution is designed to reduce unnecessary human suffering, save resources and money and help reduce pollution and climate change. Since it can be difficult to plan and take action for adaptation and resilience choices, this webinar will highlight domestic examples on a campus and with community partners to show how higher education research and applied projects can produce positive community outcomes.

The webinar will consist of:

1. Very quick overview of the need for and benefits of adaptation and resilience planning and action
2. Real world examples from higher education in partnership with other sectors (government, campus, communities)
3. Resources for planning, operationalization and continuous improvement

Target audiences include staff from the following areas: academics and students, planning; facilities; security; business and finance; procurement; housing; student affairs; counseling; auxiliary services; food and catering; and sustainability offices.

Presenters

Tim Carter
President
Second Nature

Beth Gibbons
Executive Director
American Society of Adaptation Professionals

Ben Newton
Environmental Sustainability Director
Central Community College in Nebraska

Michelle Covi
Assistant Professor, Ocean, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences Department, Old Dominion University