Project Context

The convergence of high temperatures, subtropical climatic zones, and a continuous cycle of land-loss and land gain, along the Gulf Coast, have resulted in a landscape of rapidly changing alluvial plains, islands, shorelines, rolling hills, and some of the most extensive wetlands in the United States. These changes, along with the exposure of the Gulf Coast to environmental and technological hazards and climate change, threaten the loss of communities, the landscape, and habitats. 

Community-based organizations (CBOs) on the Gulf Coast play an imperative role in coastal resilience planning. Even when in physical proximity to one another CBOs often represent distinct geographies, leaving them well positioned to identify and understand the risks that their environments face. More importantly, CBOs hold localized knowledge about developing and navigating solutions relevant to their assets and threats. To support CBOs in their work, this project brings together five national nonprofit organizations, including the Anthropocene Alliance; the Bill Anderson Fund; the Climagration Network; Buy-In Community Planning; and the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) International to develop protocols for nature-based solutions that protect flood-prone communities and enhance wildlife habitats.

Project Purpose

This project engages community leaders, builds local expertise, and develops roadmaps for fourteen community-based organizations that aim to implement nature-based solutions to enhance local coastal resilience and restore degraded wildlife habitats in three of the highest risk states in the United States—Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi. 

Outcomes

• Provide one-on-one support to 15 community-based organizations 
• Assist each CBO with coastal hazard research focused on equity based solutions
• Facilitate workshops based on organizational and geographic needs
• Connect CBOs with other potential partners
• Contribute to each CBO’s roadmap in collaboration with the Anthropocene Alliance 

Project Team

Project Lead: Yajaira I. Ayala, Ph.D., Independent Consultant, Bill Anderson Fund Alumna

Project Supervisor: Nnenia Campbell, Ph.D., Bill Anderson Fund

Project partners: 

Anthropocene Alliance 

Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) International 

Buy-In Community Planning

Climagration Network