Community Resilience Organizations (CROs)

Climate change. Superstorms. Terrorism. Power outages. Chemical spills. Our communities face ever-worsening hazards. Most towns have emergency response and hazard mitigation plans, but it’s impossible to anticipate everything. The best solution is to build resilience – the ability for communities to come together and solve whatever problems that come their way. That involves preparing for things like climate change and floods, but also building self-reliance and strong community ties.

Community Resilience Organizations (CROs) are local teams that engage residents and town leaders in climate adaptation, disaster preparedness and hazard mitigation, while strengthening local collaboration and social cohesion. CROs break down community silos by bringing together a diverse mix of stakeholders involved in resilience and hazard mitigation: emergency management, conservation, social services, government and more. Through an annual Day for CROing and ongoing projects, teams engage youth and the broader community to collaborate on critical projects that will make the town stronger and safer, simultaneously celebrating local spirit and building community.

The CROs organization provides backbone support to local teams. We share resources, provide technical assistance and capacity building, help fundraise, and host an annual summit for town CROs teams across the state.