For the past two months we’ve discussed how it can be uncomfortable to have conversations about climate change. A major takeaway was that we all care about the places we’re connected to, and having open, honest conversations about those places and why we care about them is a great way to connect with others and talk about changes we see and why they’re important. This month we’re shifting gears, to take a closer look at attitudes and perceptions of plans and projects to increase climate-resilience.
There’s a common colloquialism people like to throw around when a project or plan is rejected by local communities- NIMBY. NIMBY stands for “Not in my backyard” and it signifies opposition to something some consider undesirable. NIMBYism is used in a lot of contexts, and today we’re going to focus specifically on its applications for plans and projects to increase climate resilience. Plans and projects range from incorporating nature-based solutions (NbS) with or instead of traditional hard engineering (see past blog posts here and here to learn more) to building renewable energy infrastructure to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels.
A recent study of NbS found that NIMBYism was a barrier to implementing nature-based projects, and that residents were supportive of NbS generally, but when a project influenced their day-to-day life by eliminating parking or attracting insects, opposition increased. Similarly, a recent article in the Atlantic discusses a series of cases where local residents rallied to oppose renewable energy projects in their neighborhoods. UC Santa Barbara professor, Leah Stokes, and colleagues report that in the US, opposition to wind energy is more intense in whiter census tracts, and in Canada, opposition is more intense in wealthier communities. If this raises major red flags in your brain, you’re not alone.
Researchers have been studying NIMBYism for a long time, and their recommendations for overcoming NIMBYism might surprise you. For starters, NIMBYism is rarely the only reason climate-resilient projects and plans fail. There are so many factors that contribute to successful NbS and renewable energy projects, including (but not limited to) having creative, innovative planners and decision makers who can work through the complexities that arise when implementing novel solutions and overcoming planning silos. Another critical component for successful projects is including impacted people early, valuing their knowledge, and adapting projects for place-based, community-specific needs.
When we dig deeper into why people oppose projects, we see that there are a lot of factors that influence their attitudes and perceptions. For example, fear about loss of quality of life and property values are two major drivers of opposition, and probably feelings we can all relate to. Think of your favorite place to walk, think, or hang out with friends. Now, imagine next time you go to that place you see a sign saying that soon it will undergo construction that will change it indefinitely, but not to worry, because the changes will be good. You’re going to have questions, right? And, if you’re not given a platform to ask those questions, your confusion might turn into concern or anger. I know mine would.
So, what does all this mean for climate-resilient projects? How do we move beyond classifying people who oppose projects as difficult, or selfish NIMBYs, and strive towards understanding different perspectives and including them in mutually beneficial, transparent decision making? That’s a topic for next month.
Photo by gretta vosper on Unsplash
