An Introduction to Climate Ready D.C. 2.0

Climate Ready DC 2.0 is the District of Columbia’s plan to prepare for the impacts of a changing climate. The climate is changing around the globe and resulting in record-breaking temperatures, severe storms, wildfires, flooding, landslides and other extreme weather events. These effects are not just global:  District residents are feeling the impacts of climate change, too .

Climate science indicates that these events will becomes more intense and more frequent in both the near and distant future. While summertime heat and hurricane season have always put the District at risk, we are now entering a new and far more dangerous era. The science behind climate change projections illustrates a threat to the District that will grow increasingly existential into the future.

In order to protect the lives and livelihoods of its residents and businesses, the District must prepare for the changes to come. Climate Ready DC 2.0 is an update to the  original  Climate Ready DC, released in 2016, and is the District’s plan to prepare for and adapt to the changing climate. Climate Ready DC 2.0 also serves as an update to the Climate Action goal of  Resilient DC , originally published in 2019.

Climate Ready DC 2.0 will establish a long-term vision for how the District will adapt to the new conditions of the climate and a short-term action plan for steps that the District will take in the next five years to achieve that vision.

This plan is informed by the  input of many stakeholders and the voices of District residents  who have already experienced the impacts of climate change firsthand.

The goals, objectives and actions that will be included in this plan will aim to help residents be better prepared for extreme weather, reduce the negative health impacts of climate change, improve the resilience of the built environment, and strengthen the economy to better withstand the shocks and stressors of extreme heat, flooding and storms.

This StoryMap serves as an introduction to the content that the Department of Energy and Environment (DOEE) and the Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency (HSEMA) are preparing for Climate Ready DC 2.0, which will be finalized in 2025.

Changes observed in Earth’s climate since the mid-20th century are driven by human activities, particularly fossil fuel burning, which increases heat-trapping greenhouse gas levels in Earth’s atmosphere, raising Earth’s average surface temperature. This increase in global temperatures is already having  wide-ranging effects in the District .

Unfortunately, scientists predict that the negative impacts of climate change will drastically increase in coming decades. DOEE originally published the District’s  official climate change projections  in 2015, and is currently updating those projections with the latest available data. Some of the trends revealed in this science include:

Not everyone experiences weather-related disasters in the same way. Even if the entire District is exposed to the same extreme heat or flood, different populations may be more sensitive than others. For example, young children and elderly populations with asthma may be more sensitive to extreme heat days. Some populations may also have more capacity to adapt to the event. For example, wealthier homeowners may be able to afford more flood protection improvements to their property than lower-income homeowners.

The District strives to ensure that everyone can adapt to climate change regardless of their sensitivity and adaptive capacity. This is why it is important to evaluate vulnerability to climate risks though an equity-informed lens. DOEE currently does this through the Flood Resilience Focus Area Strategy and the Heat Sensitivity-Exposure Index.

These documents are meant to be routinely revised to capture advances in science, updates in demographic data, new developments and changes in land uses, and the implementation of resilience measures that might change areas’ exposure to flood risk.

Imagine it’s 2050. Although the climate has changed significantly, the District is still Climate Ready. What does this future DC look like? How has the District thrived in the face of change? What are the best things about the District that have been preserved?

Being Climate Ready means ensuring that the District thrives despite challenges brought on by climate-related incidents. This means building resilient infrastructure and supporting residents and businesses, but it also means protecting aspects of the city that residents love. It means preserving culture and protecting residents. It means increasing affordability and accessibility.

Here are some ideas for a Climate Ready DC vision. What are yours? 

• All District residents are empowered with the knowledge, tools, and resources to prepare for climate impacts.
• Infrastructure uses innovative techniques that leverage the natural environment to keep people safe from flooding and heat.
• All District residents are protected from extreme weather at home, at work, and everywhere in between.
• Future generations will inherit a city that is prepared for extreme weather.
• The District economy is resilient despite disruptions caused by extreme weather.
• The District makes major changes to adapt to challenging weather while preserving the city’s identity and promoting affordability.
• The District is a place where residents can age in place and experience their ideal quality of life.
• The District is full of safe, accessible, and green spaces to live, work, play and learn. 
• Extreme weather events do not permanently disrupt the daily lives of District residents when they occur.
• Investments in climate resilience create new jobs and career paths for District residents.

Investing in climate resilience now will help the District save money and protect residents’ health in the future. The extreme weather associated with climate change has already had severe impacts across the country, and many of these are felt in the District.

DOEE and HSEMA have been meeting with District residents about the current and future impacts of climate change since the original publication of Climate Ready DC in 2016. In 2024, these teams increased their outreach efforts and engaged with thousands of District residents at community events, through focus groups, through one-on-one interviews and at public workshops.  Read more about what residents have shared .

District residents shared personal stories of their experiences with heat, rain, flooding, and powerful storms, which can leave a lasting impact on families, finances, and mental health. As one resident shared: “I just think that overall, as DC. Residents, we're like warriors. We're like survivors like, we've been through a lot of different weather conditions, and we seem to know how to adapt and handle things."

District residents are sharing ways they are adapting to hotter temperatures, more rain, and stronger storms, and getting #InMyClimateReadyEra. We met Steve at a cooling center in Ward 6 who shared: “Things like ride share, metro, and delivery help me manage getting around during extreme weather. I also use 311. These kinds of services help get through climate change.” Read more tips to be prepared at ready.dc.gov.

 Share your own story.  

Climate change presents enormous challenges, but a changing climate does not mean that the District will not continue to thrive in the future. The following scenarios are just two examples of how the District may be able to leverage its investments in climate adaptation to do more than just reduce climate risk.

The District has been busy implementing the 2024 Downtown Action Plan. New development, renovated buildings and revitalized public outdoor spaces not only brought new life to the city’s core, but these places have also now been designed to withstand the growing impacts of climate change. These efficient buildings are able to keep their tenants safe and cool while remaining energy efficient, and the outdoor environment downtown has become a shaded haven from the summer heat.

Downtown has expanded its tree canopy coverage and installed “cool corridors” that use trees, shade structures, green walls and reflective “cool pavement” to create safe and comfortable pedestrian environments. Other neighborhoods around the District have done the same, especially those that are home to the most heat-sensitive populations. The District has surpassed its 2032 goal of 40% tree canopy coverage.

These improvements have made downtown and other economic hubs into even more shaded and walkable environments, which has in turn driven even more retail activity. The cool corridors have themselves become tourist attractions, with visitors taking selfies and purchasing postcards of these award-winning outdoor space designs. People from around the United States and world become increasingly aware of the importance of staying safe in the heat.

As the District’s economy grows, driven by a cool and resilient downtown, the District is better able to offer services and implement programs that ensure that everyone has access to safe, cool indoor and outdoor spaces.

Over the decades since 2025, the global sea level has risen and with it the Potomac and Anacostia Rivers have risen 16 inches. The neighborhoods, infrastructure and parks along these rivers have been prepared for this, however, and the District embraces the rivers as core assets to its award-winning network of open spaces, its diverse economy, and its cultural identity.

New development along the Anacostia River has set new standards for resilient design. World-class buildings and landscapes are designed to accommodate the rise in waters and the potential storm surges that they come with. Waterfront neighborhoods feature automated flood response systems, wet-floodproofed first floor spaces, and networks of blue-green infrastructure (BGI).

These BGI networks are made up of patches of planted landscapes combined with water storage areas that function like a sponge. Water is captured and channeled from sponge to sponge, ensuring that no homes or travel routes are compromised. During blue skies, many of these green spaces become recreation and gathering spaces for residents, while others provide habitat for the District’s native wildlife.

While major storms like derechos and even hurricanes have hit the District, the city has been prepared to withstand the influx of riverine flooding and immense rainfall. This has protected the lives, livelihoods and property of District residents and ensured that the city remains a global leader in healthy, green, livable and economically resilient cities.

Climate Ready DC 2.0 is still being written. The following are proposed ideas to be included in the final plan, which will be completed in 2025.

The commitments laid forth in the plan will be divided among four overarching goals. Each of these includes several high priority actions. A table may also be included at the end of the document that lists additional potential initiatives that the District should pursue, pending resources and capacity. All these items are informed by three guiding principles.

1. Focus on people and lead with equity

The ultimate impacts of climate change are those effects that impact District residents’ daily lives. Climate Ready DC will focus on how the climate is impacting the ability of residents to thrive. Recognizing that the negative impacts of climate change disproportionately affect people of color in the District, due to decades of racial segregation and policies that have created inequitable distribution of climate risk, Climate Ready DC will prioritize actions that build resilience equitably.

2. Provide multiple benefits and weave resilience into daily life

Climate resilience cannot be a standalone effort in a silo that is separate from other issues. The climate impacts everything and everyone; resilience must be considered in all aspects of governance. Investments in resilience can also serve as investments in other benefits as well, including improved public health, improved public space, improved transportation infrastructure, environmental restoration, community-building, and more.

3. Turn to nature for solutions

Changes in the climate are a reminder that the ecological systems around us have enormous impacts on us, and us on them. The District’s ecosystems and the wider natural world contain powerful capacities to assist District residents in adapting to a changing climate. Leveraging nature-based solutions is not only cost effective but also part of a vision of a future in which the District thrives better in the local, regional and global ecosystem. Resilience projects should leverage nature and the power of healthy ecosystems to protect people’s health, optimize infrastructural performance and safeguard a stable and biodiverse future.

Climate Ready DC presents four overarching climate resilience goals for the District of Columbia. These goals represent the pathways through which District government can take action to strengthen the District’s preparedness for a changing climate.

These are proposed steps that the District could take in the coming years toward achieving each of the four goals. These proposed actions are priorities that the District should focus on in the short term and complete within the 5-year implementation period of Climate Ready DC 2.0. These steps would establish baseline activities that mobilize District government to better respond to climate change, build from the momentum established by previous activities, and follow best practices and precedents set by other U.S. cities.

Climate Ready DC is still in development.  Sign up for project updates .