Urban Resilience Capabilities: Applying Capability Analysis to Improve Local Policy Planning

Abstract

Urban resilience has become the new norm for cities as they cope with, among other things, extreme weather and climate disasters. Cities throughout the United States have begun to develop plans to prepare for these emerging risks. Despite cities' planning efforts, implementation of changes and evaluation of the effects of those changes on urban resilience remains a challenge. This is in part due to the lack of understanding of what it means to operationalize resilience. In many ways, resilience remains a “fuzzy concept” that is subject to interpretation and being “coopted” by local planners and policymakers. In this paper, we explore the feasibility of applying a homeland security capability analysis methodology to the field of urban resilience, using the City of Los Angeles as an example to demonstrate its application. We suggest employing this methodology might lead to an improved understanding of cities' abilities to operationalize resilience. This should, in turn, provide improved processes and guidance for how cities approach implementing and evaluating these plans and policies. Our exploratory research focuses specifically on extreme weather and climate disaster risk, although it could hold value for managing other types of risk.