How Zurich is scaling climate adaptation through partnerships

The Z Zurich Foundation (the Foundation) has embarked on a transformative global initiative known as the Urban Climate Resilience Program (UCRP).

The program was created to tackle the urgent problems caused by climate change in dense urban environments, which worsen the impact on vulnerable groups.

Building on over a decade of experience with the Zurich Flood Resilience Alliance (the Alliance), the Foundation is now expanding its work into more urban spaces across the globe, and adding heatwaves and wildfires to the list of hazards.

There is increasing evidence that investing in resilience not only reduces immediate disaster losses (Reviewing estimates of the economic efficiency of disaster risk management: opportunities and limitations of using risk-based cost–benefi t analysis’, R. Mechler)  but also promotes economic growth, and generates social and environmental co-benefits. (The Triple Dividend of Resilience: from concept to application, Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment)

The Foundation’s commitment to urban climate resilience is driven by these insights, acknowledging that proactive measures can lead to enhanced community wellbeing and substantial long-term savings.

WHAT IS THE URBAN CLIMATE RESILIENCE PROGRAM (UCRP) ABOUT?

The UCRP is a multi-sector collaboration currently programmed in 47 communities in 15 cities located in nine countries: Australia, Colombia, Ecuador, Italy, Malaysia, Spain, Turkey, the UK, and the US.

The Foundation is collaborating with local and global organisations such as C40 Cities, ICLEI, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, Plan International, and Resilient Cities Network, along with local Zurich Insurance Group (Zurich) business units.

The local and global collaboration leverages Zurich’s expertise, capacity, and networks to maximise the program’s impact. “The UCRP offers a chance to learn and engage with a diverse group of individuals united by the goal of building a sustainable and resilient tomorrow.

“By joining forces, we can partake in pioneering initiatives that tackle urgent issues and support communities close to us,” highlights Teresa Wong, chief risk officer of the P&C segment and head of sustainability risks at Zurich Malaysia.

The local UCRP program employs a customised four-step methodology to enhance community resilience: Identify, Analyse, Develop Solutions, and Scale.

First, it engages with communities to pinpoint those in need. Then, it conducts thorough analyses of each community’s climate-related challenges. Next, it plans, develops, and implements tailored solutions to bolster resilience. Finally, it captures insights and scales successful projects in partnership with public and private sectors.

By assessing resilience to climate risks—such as floods, heatwaves, and wildfires—across human, social, physical, natural, and economic dimensions, the program focuses on vulnerable urban communities disproportionately impacted by poverty, resource access, and discrimination. This holistic strategy seamlessly integrates grassroots efforts with broader initiatives, ensuring a comprehensive approach to building climate resilience.

SPOTLIGHT ON SPAIN

In Spain, the Foundation is collaborating with Cruz Roja Española (Spanish Red Cross), the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) as well as Zurich Spain.

Vicente Cancio, CEO of Zurich Spain, speaks to the UCRP’s innovative nature: “This is a pioneering project in Spain that aims to improve and strengthen personal, community, and institutional capacities with knowledge and resources – allowing us to better adapt to increasingly frequent floods and heatwaves, thereby reducing their negative impact on the people.”

Zurich Spain has committed resources to the project, with dedicated employees participating actively in local project implementation and starting to involve the broader workforce with hands-on and skills-based volunteering activities.

Climate Resilience specialists from Zurich Resilience Solutions collaborated with local communities, leveraging their expertise in disaster risk reduction to support the Spanish Red Cross by providing climate risk assessments and recommendations on climate adaptation measures.

“This is a pioneering project in Spain that aims to improve and strengthen personal, community, and institutional capacities with knowledge and resources”

Following the UCRP’s implementation approach, the project team selected seven communities in Madrid and Valencia, through a rigorous process: San Cristobal, Vistalegre in Madrid and Marxalanes, Ciudad Jardín, L’Amistat, Ayora, La Punta in Valencia.

The Spanish Red Cross initiated the project for measuring community resilience to heatwaves in Madrid, and to floods and heatwaves in Valencia.

“Right now we are in the municipal centres for the elderly, which are one of the most affected people, especially by the heat, because they do not feel the same thermal sensation or dehydration. So we are very pleased with the work and the project,” says one of the project facilitators in a senior centre in San Cristóbal.

Community resilience is measured through an innovative tool developed by the Alliance – the Climate Resilience Measurement for Communities (CRMC).

Since 2013, the approach has been utilised in more than 400 communities. By applying this methodology with its dedicated web-based platform, the project team in Spain gained valuable insights about their communities’ resilience strengths and weaknesses from a variety of data sources.

The preliminary findings of assessment revealed several areas for improvement, including:

• financial health at the household level
• access to essential energy services
• public infrastructure maintenance
• early warning message awareness
• training for flood preparedness, educational facility conditions; and • social inclusion.

“We are all, to one extent or another, vulnerable to extreme events and, in the face of this, there is a clear need to integrate emergency preparedness into our present and future normality. Clearly, it is urgent, among other measures, to improve the understanding we have of how risk is part of our lives and increase our capacities to deal with it,” explains María del Mar Pageo, president of the Spanish Red Cross.

When assessing the resilience data, Iñigo Vila, Head of Relief and Emergencies at the Spanish Red Cross emphasised the importance of addressing the digital divide and other barriers that prevent vulnerable groups from accessing critical information.

To deliver on some of these issues identified by the community assessment, UCRP Spain is working on various short-term actions, while prioritising and developing longer-term interventions:

• Financial Education: Conducting workshops on household economic management.
• Energy Efficiency: Running energy-saving workshops and awareness campaigns.
• Climate Resource Mapping: Making early warning systems known and educating the population on emergency preparedness.
• First Response Kits: Distributing kits to help communities face emergencies such as heatwaves and floods.

Victoria is one of the beneficiaries in Valencia, where Red Cross Spain team is delivering more than 2000 households heatwave and flood first response kits and reminding them on the recommended actions.

“When it is hot, I am staying at home, of course,” she says after the intervention. Tania, a resident in San Cristobal and technical facilitator of El Barrio Más Joven points out, “I think projects like these (UCRP) are good for the neighbourhood because they help the neighbours to become aware that it is not very complicated to try to stay at home or in the cooler neighbourhood, and take care of our health when facing the hot summers that we are going through lately.”

SCALING IMPACT

Spain is one of nine countries where the UCRP has begun to generate results and aims to continue to build on its successes to engage more partners and scale impact.

“The UCRP emphasises multi-sector collaboration to tackle the complex challenges facing urban communities. Addressing these challenges requires systemic changes, diverse skills and perspectives and shared resources. No single entity can achieve this alone. Through involving local governments, NGOs, community groups, academia, and the private sector, we can share knowledge, integrate climate strategies, and close financial gaps,” says Gregory Renand, head of the Z Zurich Foundation.

Our Urban Climate Resilience Program represents a forward-thinking, collaborative and proactive approach, that aims that aims to influence policymakers and boost investment in climate resilience.

By building on past experiences and fostering strong partnerships, we are making significant strides towards building sustainable and resilient urban communities worldwide.

ABOUT Z ZURICH FOUNDATION

The Z Zurich Foundation works alongside Zurich Insurance Group employees and other stakeholders as well as with governments and NGOs in pursuit of a future where people can thrive in the face of increasing climate hazards and catastrophes, where those of us feeling the stresses of life are empowered to speak up, and where the marginalised in our society can reach their full potential.

The Z Zurich Foundation is a Swiss-based charitable foundation established by members of the Zurich Insurance Group. It is the main vehicle by which Zurich Insurance Group delivers on its global community investment strategy.

Visit the Z Zurich Foundation’s website to learn more about its work: https://zurich.foundation. Follow Z Zurich Foundation on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.