Resilience Planning and Project Finance Process:
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Set Goals and Objectives

Urban Resilience Roadmap
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Set Goals and Objectives
Introduction Competencies/Skills Tools Tips Supporting Entities Potential Outputs
Introduction

The purpose of this step is to define “resilience” in the context of the city, and what the desired outcomes of the resilience building process are.  While the overall definition of resilience will not change, the parameters for measuring resilience will vary depending on the unique challenges, capabilities, and opportunities of a city and will depend on the experiences and aspirations of the various stakeholders.  This step is therefore critical for creating shared values among stakeholders that will guide the subsequent steps in the process.  The outcome of this step maybe in the form of a statement of principles, priorities, and objectives which will guide the selection of resilience building activities. The goals and objectives set out as part of the resilience planning process should be consistent with the overall city planning framework. As far as practical, the resilience goals should be mainstreamed into the overall goals of the city.   

The process of setting the overall goals and objectives should be consultative and involve the key stakeholders identified in the previous step. The following key considerations may inform the goal setting process:

  • Inventory of resilience building efforts that have been undertaken or that are currently underway in the city, along with results and lessons learned;
  • Description of development challenges currently facing the city (e.g. informal settlement, waste management, poverty alleviation) and trends;
  • Review of existing policy and planning framework related to resilience, climate change adaptation, disaster risk reduction, and development; and
  • Initial resilience profile and inventory of assets and capabilities.

These outputs can serve to further raise awareness among stakeholders and galvanize support from the city’s leadership.  A major output of this stage is to establish a baseline and “status report” for the city, which will help in identifying priority areas for building resilience.  A second potential output is a more detailed workplan which lays out planning activities, budgetary needs, and timelines, which can be submitted to the city government.

Competencies/Skills
  • Stakeholder engagement and facilitation; and
  • Setting organizational priorities and visioning exercises
Tools/Resources

There are numerous tools and resources that can be used as models or to guide the establishment of resilience building objectives and goals. 

  • World Bank CityStrength Diagnostic.  “The CityStrength Diagnostic was developed to help cities understand their exposure to risks, level of resilience, and the performance of urban systems while facilitating a dialogue among stakeholders—such as different levels of government, civil society, residents, and the private sector”;
  • Rockefeller Foundation City Resilience Index.  The CRI “provides a holistic articulation of city resilience, structured around four dimensions and 12 goals that are critical for the resilience of our cities”;
  • UN-Habitat City Resilience Profiling Programme (CRPP) and City Resilience Profiling Tool (CRPT).  “The CRPP goes beyond conventional approaches to ‘risk reduction’, delivering a forward-looking, multi-sectoral, multi-hazard, multi-stakeholder model for building resilience that recognizes the complexities and unique value of cities, and the inherent interdependencies of each part of an urban system”; and
  • UNISDR Disaster Resilience Scorecard for Cities.  “This scorecard provides a set of assessments that will allow cities to understand how resilient they are to natural disasters.” 
Tips
  • A frequent critique of the resilience approach is a “lack of normativity and direction” (Bahadur and Tanner 2014).  In other words, “resilience” can sometimes be an empty word, without specific meaning.  This stage encourages city stakeholders to create their own definition of resilience and agree upon it;
  • Identifying a common vision is a critical element in maintaining stakeholder engagement;
  • Defining transformative change is an important component in formulating effective policy and designing bankable resilience and adaptation projects; and
  • A key strength of the resilience building process is that it seeks to identify pathways of transformative change; rather than supporting quick-fix approaches and short-term solutions, resilience entails identifying and addressing the factors that create vulnerability and undermine or inhibit development progress.  Addressing these drivers of vulnerability will empower a process of sustained transformation.
Supporting Entities/Processes
Potential Outputs
  • Vision statement;
  • Definition of resilience and transformational change;
  • Review of policy, legal, and administrative framework to determine how the resilience planning process can work with the institutional grain; 
  • Institutional review and map of existing programs and activities related to resilience building objectives;
  • General Indicators for resilience outcomes and impacts; and
  • Initial workplan including timeline for planning process for submission to city executive.