Climate change is a complex problem. The complexity of the climate challenge makes some people put the issue aside, hoping they will escape a direct hit from spreading and worsening climate impacts. That is a mistake, which could be very costly.

Complexity is built into the climate equation at all points, because the climate system affects all life on Earth, and by extension, all areas of human activity. It also creates pervasive secondary and further ripple effects. This can make it hard to know where to start. To simplify, we can focus on two major questions that are always relevant: What is your risk? What gives you resilience? 

It can help to define these terms, too, as they both relate to the full spectrum of questions about relative security and wellbeing. 

• Risk means vulnerability to shock events, slow-onset disruptions, and evolving trends, which are beyond your control.
• Resilience is a measure of how well you are prepared to manage and overcome those risks, if they become crises.

Whatever else you might think of when you hear references to climate — policy, science, national action plans, technological innovation, etc. — everything always comes back to questions of risk and resilience. Who is facing what level of risk? How vulnerable are they? Is that fair, given their historical responsibility or leverage to make system-wide change? What can be done to reduce risk and improve our overall security and wellbeing? 

Many of us have long advocated for clear standards that value climate risk reduction and resilience, as part of the everyday considerations of decision-makers in all sectors. The problem facing all of us, when those standards come too late or are not enacted in the first place, is that we have less clarity about the landscape of risk, cost, and need, and so the whole economy around us makes fewer of the necessary adjustments, and then leaves us with fewer good options. 

Put another way: Would you rather wait for FEMA aid to rebuild your home or business or have the tools, service-providers, infrastructure, and know-how, to avoid catastrophic impacts? You need the economy evolving around you, if you want to be in that second position. 

As more people come to understand that the climate does not measure your readiness by your politics, and overwhelming risk will eventually be a real threat to everyday operations, more people will seek goods and services that support a wider resilience economy. As those options become investable and reach scale, system change that provides benefits to all of us will become yet another area of risk for businesses that have not begun adjusting.  

The same can be true for municipalities and for homeowners. Think of your access to something like insurance. Ideally, insurance is an affordable just-in-case measure that covers you when you really need help. Climate risk is changing that dynamic, however, and making it harder for insurers to justify providing affordable coverage to people who have not taken basic precautions.

The resilience economy is coming. The question is whether it will come in a timely, cost-effective, thoughtful and inclusive way, or whether it will arrive in sudden bursts of activity, in response to chaos-causing shock events and major disruptions. Whichever of these we will have, and it is looking like the second is still more likely than the first, your own readiness is a cost-benefit question.

How much do you want to spend being unprepared, or being bound to a system that is unprepared across the board? 

If the answer is not very much, or you would rather not waste money on preventable disasters, or you would like to be able to buy insurance to cover what needs you might incur from unforeseen events beyond your control… then you are already thinking with a resilience mindset. So, how ready are you for the resilience economy?

A few questions can help you determine your position in the landscape of risk, resilience, and readiness: 

1. Have you experienced direct physical damage linked to extreme weather?
2. Have you acted to improve your readiness for extreme weather, taking note of others’ negative experiences?
3. Do you know which incentives are available to help you reduce climate risk?
4. Have you reviewed your suppliers and service providers in light of their climate preparedness?
5. Are you up to date on infrastructure upgrades that can align you with insurance providers’ guidance?
6. Is your municipality making upgrades to critical infrastructure to reduce risk for everyone?
7. What kind of rainy day fund do you have set aside, and are their constraints on accessing it?

These are just examples of information you need in the age of climate stress, compound risk, and layered resilience-building. The questions themselves, and the kinds of resources you will need to answer them effectively, will vary based on your situation—your sector, your competitors, your geographical location, what kind of physical structures you own or depend on.