The City of Nashua has been working with community stakeholders throughout 2018 to develop a comprehensive Resilient Nashua Initiative. The Resilient Nashua Initiative's main purpose is to identify acute shocks and chronic stressors impacting the City of Nashua, now and in the future, and collaboratively find solutions to address these complex issues. The Initiative will focus on updating the City's Hazard Mitigation Plan as well as developing a Resilience Strategy. To learn more about the Resilience Initiative and future meetings check out our webpage here:http://www.livablenashua.org/resilient-nashua-initiative/

Urban Resilience is the capacity of individuals, communities, institutions, businesses, and systems within a city to survive, adapt, and grow no matter what kinds of chronic stresses and acute shocks they experience.

Chronic Stresses weaken the fabric of a city on a day-to-day or cyclical basis

Examples include: high unemployment, inefficient public transportation systems, endemic violence, and chronic food and water shortages.

Acute Shocks are sudden, sharp events that threaten a city

Examples include: earthquakes, floods, disease outbreaks, and terrorist attacks.

What's in the Works

The City of Nashua is updating the FEMA required Hazard Mitigation Plan in 2018 and is incorporating resilience to long term stressors in this effort. The City's new Community Resilience Plan will direct long-term investments to infrastructure and natural resources while promoting hazard mitigation, climate adaptation, and community resilience.

What's There Now

Nashua has done a great job at mitigating the impacts to hazards by promoting a strong building code, acquiring green space for flood storage, and hosting events and programs to build social capital for neighborhood resilience. There are areas for improvement, particularly as our infrastructure ages and we experience more frequent and severe weather events due to climate change.

What's Happening Next

The Resilient Nashua Initiative is looking for input from residents, businesses, and other community stakeholders in the development of recommendations and projects that promote community resilience across the City. Using the coUrbanize Platform, the Initiative will be identifying locations that could use improvements to reduce impacts due to the many shocks and stressors impacting our City.