By: Emma Rose
Climate change has already begun wreaking havoc on coastal communities across the globe, including Miami, Venice, and the Philippines. Adaptation mechanisms may be the most powerful weapons these communities have to combat sea level rise and the other disastrous effects of a warming planet. However, these adaptation programs must fit within each nation’s unique federal and local regulatory schemes. Additionally, when they are funded by the federal government or foreign sources, these communities may have to sacrifice some autonomy over their implementation. While adaptation strategies can be broken down into three primary modes—resistance, transformation, and retreat—the most effective combination of each varies between developed and developing countries, the latter of which may possess fewer resources and less preexisting infrastructure. This Note analyzes Miami, Venice, and the Philippines as case studies in order to develop a model framework for adaptation mechanisms for coastal cities everywhere.