What Is the Strong Towns Response to Natural Disasters?
(Original image: ICMA Photos on Flickr.)
Editor's Note: We are deeply saddened to see the damage Hurricane Helene has done to Western North Carolina. Please see the additional notes for ways you can help.
In this episode of Upzoned, co-hosts Abby Newsham and Chuck Marohn discuss managed retreat, where the federal government buys land from people to encourage them to move away from areas at high risk for natural disaster. According to the article, to actually move the necessary amount of people, the government needs to increase its efforts by a factor of 200.
Chuck and Abby talk about the issues with this method of natural disaster management, as well as other common approaches like rebuilding disaster areas to be more fortified, and share their thoughts on alternative responses to natural disasters.
ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES
Ways to help Western North Carolina, suggested by Local Conversations in the area:
“Retreating From the Coasts Makes Sense, But Our Current Approach Isn’t Working,” by Tim Robustelli and Yuliya Panfil, Shelterforce Magazine (August 2024).
Abby Newsham is the cohost of the Upzoned podcast. Abby is an urban design and planning consultant at Multistudio in Kansas City, Missouri. In her own community, she works to advance bottom-up strategies that enhance both private development and the public realm, and facilitates the ad-hoc Kansas City chapter of the Incremental Development Alliance. When she’s not geeking out over cities, Abby is an avid urban mountain biker (because: potholes), audiobook and podcast junkie, amateur rock climber, and guitarist. You can connect with Abby on Twitter at @abbykatkc.