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The Rockefeller Foundation Launches Challenge to Build Greater Resilience in 100 Cities around the World
100 Resilient Cities Challenge Announced on Day of Foundation's Centennial
Foundation makes $100 million effort to build resilience in cities worldwide
NEW YORK, May 14, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Rooted in a century of investing in innovation, and as a leader in the growing field of resilience, today the Rockefeller Foundation announced a $100 million commitment to build urban resilience in cities around the world. The Foundation's 100 Resilient Cities Centennial Challenge will select one hundred cities across the globe, and through technical support and resources for developing and implementing plans for urban resilience, the Foundation will help cities leverage billions of additional dollars in infrastructure financing.
As natural and man-made shocks and stresses grow in frequency, impact and scale, with the ability to ripple across systems and geographies, cities are largely unprepared to respond to, withstand, and bounce back from disasters. The greatest burden of these events, such as the impacts of climate change or public health threats, often falls on vulnerable people who have fewer means to cope with them and who take longer to recover, disrupting livelihoods and increasing inequality. Therefore, there is an urgent need to focus on resilience, not only to better prepare for the next disaster, but to improve the well-being of the poor or vulnerable people throughout the world.
"One-hundred years ago today, the Rockefeller Foundation opened its doors with the mission to promote the well-being of humanity throughout the world. Today, that well-being increasingly depends on our ability to prepare for, withstand and emerge stronger from the shocks and stresses of our modern world," said Rockefeller Foundation President Dr. Judith Rodin. "With more people living in metro regions than ever before, cities are
mission critical to this goal. At the start of the Rockefeller Foundation's second century, we see urban resilience as an idea whose time has come. It is our goal that the 100 Resilient Cities Centennial Challenge will serve as a platform for greater action that will make a more resilient world."
Through the 100 Resilient Cities Centennial Challenge, the Rockefeller Foundation is inviting cities from around the world to apply to be named one of 100 resilient cities. Applicants, which can be city government officials or major institutions within a city, will be asked to present a clear description of how their city is approaching and