Future-Proofing Climate Boomtowns: Public Policies and Community Actions in Chicago, Toronto, Geneva and Zurich

This talk will present findings from a trans-Atlantic group project on urban climate adaptation. Most scholarship on urban climate governance has focused on cities facing immediate risks or places after extreme climate events have happened. This project focuses on "climate boomtowns," urban regions in cool climate zones which do not face immediate threats and may even become destinations for climate refugees. The talk will examine climate adaptation strategies in the infrastructure sector (energy, water, transport and buildings), and their impact in improving equity and resilience. Although not focused on the Global South, it will draw comparative lessons by thinking with the Global South, to identify common themes on climate governance and the remaking of urban territories.