By Lauren Nwagboli and Rebecca Yemo, Ph.D.

On Thursday, March 27, the Roundtable’s Research and Policy Analyst, Rebecca Yemo, Ph.D. and Director of Operations, Lauren Nwagboli attended the ResilientMass Summit. The event was hosted under the leadership of UMass Boston Chancellor Marcelo Suárez-Orozco, Governor Maura Healey, and Boston Mayor Michelle Wu. The summit is one of 10 regional summits inspired by a global summit (From Climate Crisis to Climate Resilience) hosted at the Vatican in 2024. The ResilientMass Summit brought together representatives from cities and towns in the Commonwealth; state government officials; business and community leaders; and leading scientists, academics, and experts within the nation and abroad. With a focus on Mitigation, Adaptation, and Societal Transformation (MAST), participants had the opportunity to engage in discussions about the impacts of climate change and how best to develop comprehensive climate resilience strategies and solutions. The themes for the summit centered around regional contexts; community engagement; global collaboration; nature-based solutions; equity and justice; unlocking finance; and insurance.

The summit opened with powerful remarks from global and state leaders who emphasized that while the impacts of the climate crisis have historically been felt most by underserved communities, climate change is a global issue that knows no boundaries. We learned that coastal areas of the world, such as those in Argentina, are increasingly threatened by severe storms and coastal erosion, while inland regions such as Vihiga County in Kenya are experiencing extreme drought and flooding. These disruptions not only harm local economies but also occur frequently and with greater intensity. As Chancellor Marcelo Suarez-Orozco stated, “This is a call to change our ways. The time for narrow self-interest is over, and it is time to embrace solidarity” to collectively fight back against climate change.

We spent the afternoon engaging in inspiring panel discussions with national leaders that emphasized the need for public-private partnerships and a collective effort by policymakers, business and community leaders, academics, and experts at the state, city, and local levels to build resilience nationally. The Health and Climate panel highlighted the most concerning consequences of the climate crisis, such as heat waves and air pollution, which can increase the risk of chronic illnesses like heart disease, stroke, and cancer. The speakers shared several solutions underway that will help combat these harmful adversaries. Allan Just, Associate Professor of Public Health and Associate Professor of Epidemiology and Environment and Society at Brown University, shared how Brown University is using technology such as exposure models to better understand the impact of various environmental factors, including air pollution, toxic substances, and climate change, on human health and ecosystems. The panel also shared how some states are implementing cooling areas, planting trees, and working with the state to provide funding to improve agricultural farming and expand access to healthier food options for vulnerable populations.

In Massachusetts, the major climate change areas of concern are extreme heat, inland and coastal flooding, and sea level rise for coastal areas. In line with this, several approaches have been adopted at the state, city, and local levels to make the Commonwealth more resilient to climate change. Governor Healey shared her administration’s efforts to tackle flood protection for cities and towns through the Division for Ecological Restoration and efforts to replace culverts. Mayor Wu also stated that Boston is the first city in the country to pass a net-zero carbon zoning. Additionally, coastal flood sensors have been installed. Notably, making the public transportation system more frequent and reliable is crucial to building climate resiliency in the Commonwealth. Efforts are also underway to ensure that public housing is more resilient.

Our key takeaways from the Summit are that addressing the climate crisis requires a collaborative effort by policymakers, business and community leaders, academics, and experts across global, national, state, and local levels. Additionally, given that the destructive impact of climate change is already underway, we need to move quickly to identify and implement solutions.

The Roundtable remains committed to working with state policymakers and the business community to advance the Commonwealth’s climate resilience. In 2024, the Roundtable, together with some of its members, served on the Commission on Energy Infrastructure Siting and Permitting. The siting and permitting reforms developed by the commission were ultimately included in the legislation, An Act promoting a clean energy grid, advancing equity, and protecting ratepayers, which was signed into law last year. In 2023 the Roundtable led the Climate Working Group, which was a part of the Economic Development Planning Council. In this role, the Roundtable worked with the public and private sectors to make a series of recommendations that eventually led to the inclusion of the climatetech initiative in the Mass Leads Act. The Roundtable serves on the state’s Energy Transformation Advisory Board and convenes policy conversations with leaders in the sustainability space.

The climate crisis is an ongoing challenge with current and future ripple effects that are already being felt in the Commonwealth, across the nation, and globally. In the words of Chancellor Marcelo Suárez-Orozco, “where there is no hope, we have to invent it.” The Roundtable will continue inventing hope in partnership with state leaders and business and community stakeholders to help pave the way for a sustainable and resilient future for all.