Practical Guide to Building Climate Resilience a key resource for Resilient Methow

The Methow Valley in Washington state includes several small towns and unincorporated areas within Okanogan County and has suffered substantial impacts of a changing climate, including increased wildfires and smoke and decreased winter snowpack with faster spring melt cycles. The Methow Valley Citizens Council (MVCC) is a local non-profit that works to protect the Methow Valley’s natural environment and rural character, and within this mission, climate change is a key focus area. In 2018 MVCC engaged a broad set of local stakeholders including 45 local organizations, agencies, and community leaders in a watershed level approach to developing a Climate Action Plan.

Resilient Methow was formed as a result of these efforts and the Methow Valley CAP includes both mitigation and adaptation. The planning process has been a compelling example of a regional, community led effort that has also included local governments in a substantial way; the team continues to develop its plan (it’s considered a living document), while in parallel a cross sector implementation team has been formed.

The Climate Ready Communities Guide was identified early in Resilient Methow’s process as the framework to use for their adaptation planning. “Climate Ready Communities’ Practical Guide to Building Climate Resilience was a key resource for Resilient Methow in developing the Methow Valley Climate Action Plan. We appreciated its on-the-ground perspective and well thought out approach and found the information on planning and executing stakeholder workshops and engaging the community to be especially useful. The guide was easily adapted for our local conditions, so we were able to make the process our own. While we didn’t need to use the Geos Institute’s support services due to local resources and capacity, we were glad to know they were available if we needed help.” says Jasmine Minbashian, executive director of MVCC.

To view the CAP and other aspects of the Resilient Methow process, visit https://www.resilientmethow.org/