Hampton Roads Resilient Region Reality Check: Increasing Community Resilience and Capacity to Adapt to Changes

The Hampton Roads Resilient Region Reality Check event was held on March 17, 2015 at Old Dominion University. The event was built on three key themes: a region-wide, multi-sectoral, and whole-of-community approach that is oriented toward actions to address SLR and flooding. This event was a collaboration between the Urban Land Institute Hampton Roads (HRULI), Old Dominion University (ODU), and the Community Engagement Working Group of the Hampton Roads Sea Level Rise Preparedness and Resilience Intergovernmental Planning Pilot Project. The overall goals of the event were to (1) capture the perceptions of the Hampton Roads community on their risks associated with sea level rise, (2) engage stakeholders in discussion within and across different stakeholder groups; and (3) assess the willingness, at a regional level, to address SLR-related issues and prepare for the coming changes. Approximately 130 residents and stakeholders across government, non-profit, business, and civil society sectors within the Hampton Roads region participated in the event. The event focused on encouraging discussion concerning three items: (1) how flooding affects citizens, (2) what can citizens do about flooding, and (3) what resources are needed to address flooding? For each question, participants were also asked to discuss and identify two regional priorities