Oh, What a World

Happy (almost) Earth Day! Whether visiting Arkansas, California, or Ohio for client engagements or enjoying neighborhood strolls that double as walking meetings with colleagues, Team Cityfi has been experiencing the beauty - and unpredictability - of our various natural surroundings recently. The juxtaposition of 80-degree April days in the Northeast with flood threats from record snow melts on the West Coast is yet another stark reminder of the reality of climate change and its profound impacts on communities. On Earth Day Eve, Associate Ryan Parzick considers one of the most consequential impacts: climate migration. Check out his insights below!

For companies, organizations, and agencies, navigating the dynamics of population displacement and influx, the transition to alternative energy sources, and the adoption of sustainable business practices is undoubtedly complex. Tackling these challenges now with a cross-sector ecosystem is critical to our future and the future of our built and natural environments. Our team is passionate about partnering with leaders and change agents to realize desired outcomes for our planet that put people first. Our expertise across Resiliency and Climate Adaptation Strategies, Cleantech and Zero-Emission Transition, and our other practice areas can equip you with the tools and knowledge for a brighter, not warmer, tomorrow.

If you are enthusiastic about supporting our mission, consider joining Cityfi! We are thrilled to announce an open Associate role on our team and encourage you to apply or share with anyone who may be interested.

Cities, Get Ready for Climate Migration!

By Ryan Parzick

As we prepare to celebrate Earth Day, it’s important to remember the reason why we have a day dedicated to our planet. The first official Earth Day was in 1970, created to educate people about the importance of environmental conservation. It has since expanded in scope to include ten core issues. While having a day to focus on our shared home is valuable, we must always be conscious of how our actions impact the environment.

Many people are experiencing firsthand how the changing climate is affecting the Earth. Globally, communities are suffering from the increased severity of weather events, sea level rise, resource scarcity, changes in agricultural production, and other impacts. In 2021, there were 23.7 million internal displacements due to natural disasters worldwide, and over 573,000 in the United States alone. Displaced people are often moving to cities.

The influx of climate-displaced people can benefit the areas where they relocate, bringing new residents who contribute to the economy and social fabric. However, this also poses challenges. Areas that were previously declining in population, like cities in the Rust Belt, have existing infrastructure and housing ready for population growth. Additionally, this region of the country has access to a large supply of fresh water from the Great Lakes and is impacted less by climate change related events like fires, sea-level rise, and extended heat waves. Some of these cities, such as Buffalo, Cincinnati, and Duluth, are promoting themselves as locations for people leaving climate-impacted areas.

However, large migrations come with complexities beyond what only having infrastructure preparedness can provide. Policy and planning are needed to protect current residents and create equitable communities. An influx of new people can raise housing costs through gentrification or put pressure on current housing supply, pushing lower-income residents out of their neighborhoods. Shortages of health services may leave the most vulnerable without adequate healthcare options. These and other potential consequences must be proactively addressed. Some cities have created, or are in the process of creating, climate action plans that incorporate measures to deal with future issues stemming from quick growth. The best plans will coordinate between local governmental departments and listen to communities’ needs to benefit not only the future city but also the current one.

In this process, Cityfi can help. Our team’s experience, intelligence, creativity, and relationships can tackle the most complex problems cities face. We have helped create a number of strategic plans and coalesced cohorts aimed at bringing lasting change for cities with similar needs. Explore some of our projects on our website!

Join Cityfi at ITS America

By Brandon Pollak

If you are headed to the annual ITS America conference April 24-27 in Dallas, Texas, there will be many fantastic speaker panels on the future of mobility. Topics include emerging technologies, equity, mobility on demand, digital infrastructure, sustainability, and more. I’ll be moderating a panel on April 26 from 12-1 p.m. CT on “Community Driven Innovation: Unleashing the Neighborhood Economy through Mobility” with Janine Ward from the State of Michigan’s Office of Future Mobility and Electrification, Techstars Managing Director Trey Bowles, and MoCaFi’s Dan Sullivan. We’ll be unpacking how innovations in mobility and 21st-century infrastructure are fueling entrepreneurship into new sectors, driving growth in forward-thinking local hubs connecting technology testbeds and policy R&D, enabling solutions to community challenges, and much more.

Cityfi Heads to Urbanism Next

By Erin Clark

Many members of Team Cityfi are attending the Urbanism Next Conference in Portland, Oregon in a couple days. Come and join Story Bellows, Karina Ricks, Camron Bridgford, and Erin Clark to learn more about the impacts of emerging technologies on cities. We'll be participating in these panel discussions and workshops:

Accelerating Climate Action in US Cities (workshop)
Breaking Through the Hype: What the Future Holds for Autonomous Vehicles in Cities
Zones, Zones, and More Zones: Getting to Universal Basic Mobility and Climate Action through Zero-Emission Zones
Using Open Data Governance to Responsibly Scale Emerging Transportation Technologies
The App-less MaaS: Building the System of Transportation Alternatives
Structural Support for Strong Pilots

Registration for the 2023 Urbanism Next Conference is still open. We hope to see you April 26-28 in Portland!

Making the Big Shift at CoMotion MIAMI

By Karina Ricks

On Earth Day Eve, it's important to focus on actions we can take right now to mitigate the effects of climate change and shift toward a more sustainable and equitable future. The federal government is making an unprecedented investment to catalyze the rapid decarbonization of transportation. Money is flowing for zero-emission buses, alternative fuel highway corridors and - at long last - community charging and fueling infrastructure.

The problem is, few communities are quite ready to seize and direct this sudden torrent of funding in a way that advances their community values and goals to provide more equitable opportunity, make our streets safer, and restore cities as people-first places.

Transitions to zero efforts so far have been scattered and siloed with transit agencies, cities, states, and private businesses all charging forward (no pun intended!) with enthusiastic - but separate - efforts.

Cityfi is pleased to offer a “Making the SHIFT” workshop at CoMotion MIAMI on May 11 to help public agencies and the private partners they must work with frame out the elements essential to integrated and cohesive zero-emission transition plans that can take this moment of profound disruption in propulsion to also transform urban mobility to increase the ease and equity of shared mobility together with clean freight and personal transport.

Join us in Miami May 10-11, and join the collaborative national network of cities, counties and regions crafting holistic strategies for transportation decarbonization. If you can’t make it to Miami, follow up with us at info@cityfi.co to see how we can help you develop an actionable and inclusive strategy for clean mobility.

City of Bellevue Releases Curb Management Plan

By Sarah Saltz

Last week, the City of Bellevue, Washington released a draft of its Curb Management Plan for public review. Bellevue, like many cities across the country, is experiencing increasing curb demand from deliveries of people and goods, a growing number of modes, and new curb uses. The Curb Management Plan aligns the City’s management of the curb with the City’s long-range transportation vision and is one of the country’s most robust curbside planning documents created by a local agency. Cityfi is proud to have supported the City’s Transportation Department with the creation of the plan with our good friends and colleagues at Nelson\Nygaard. Cityfi led the development of a Curb Pilot Roadmap, which outlines recommended near-term pilots and pilot practices and principles as well as the Curbside Practices Guide, which details how the City can implement curb management strategies to drive a multimodal street and curb system in the long-term.

Bringing Work Home: Sustainability Education at the Santa Monica Farmers Market

By Chelsea Lawson

I am excited to share that, for the second year in a row, I have received a microgrant from the Santa Monica Human Relations Council and Civic Wellbeing Partners to run a sustainability education booth at my local farmers market. The booth offers free reusable produce bags and games and prizes to help patrons remember to bring their bags each week. If any readers live near or plan to visit Santa Monica over the next few months, please drop by! It officially kicks off on Earth Day, April 22. Contact chelsea@cityfi.co for more information.