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Goal B Improve understanding of climate impacts on California’s communities, including what drives vulnerability

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Priority

Strengthen Protections for Climate Vulnerable Communities

All Priority Goals

Actions

  • Action 1 Identify the most climate vulnerable communities and individuals in California to direct and inform actions across sectors and regions that reduce risk and build resilience.

    Success Metric: Launch a statewide and all-risk, web-based platform that identifies climate vulnerable communities. Revise and update the Vulnerable Communities Platform (VCP) based on data improvements and community engagement. Develop outreach and engagement activities to support use of VCP resources.

    Timeframe: 2025 and ongoing

    Agency/Agencies: Governor’s Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation, Formerly the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research – Planning and Policy, in coordination with all relevant state agencies.

    For More Details: Integrated Climate Adaptation and Resiliency Program

    Success Metric: Increase understanding of how climate impacts California's vulnerable communities through community insights and coordinated community outreach to support use of VCP resources, and solicit community case studies that document the range and complexity of community level climate vulnerability.

    Timeframe: Ongoing

    Agency/Agencies: Governor’s Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation, Formerly the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research – Planning and Policy |Governor’s Office of Service and Community Engagement – Office of Community Partnerships and Strategic Communications

    For More Details: Office of Community Partnerships and Strategic Communications

    Success Metric: Provide technical assistance support to ensure utilization of the VCP in state and local decision-making, and facilitate use of VCP resources via outreach, engagement and technical support, in alignment with other state adaptation resources (e.g., Cal-Adapt, California Climate Adaptation Strategy).

    Timeframe: Ongoing

    Agency/Agencies: Governor’s Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation, Formerly the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research – Planning and Policy

    For More Details: Integrated Climate Adaptation and Resiliency Program

  • Action 2 Improve and refine quantitative wildfire risk assessments across California to identify the most wildfire vulnerable communities and populations for inclusion in California’s Vulnerable Communities Platform.

    Success Metric: Develop consistent wildfire risk assessment methodology through the California Fire Adapted Communities Work Group.

    Timeframe: 2025 and ongoing

    Agency/Agencies: Natural Resources Agency – Department of Forestry and Fire Protection | Governor’s Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation, Formerly the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research – Planning and Policy

    For More Details: California’s Wildfire and Forest Resilience Action Plan

    Success Metric: Develop a statewide tool for assessing wildfire hazard and adaptive capacity at the census block group level to identify communities that may be especially vulnerable to wildfire threats for inclusion in California’s Vulnerable Communities Platform, as appropriate.

    Timeframe: 2025

    Agency/Agencies: Environmental Protection Agency – Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment

    For More Details: Office of Environmental Health and Hazard Assessment’s Wildfires page

  • Action 3 Increase the collection, analysis, and reporting of data on climate-related health impacts, especially the health impacts from cascading climate risks, such as heat and wildfire smoke exposure.

    Success Metric: Increase the of indicators, models, and/or tools added to the Department of Public Health Climate Change and Health Vulnerability Indicators for California data visualization platform and/or available for public use in assessing and addressing the health effects of climate change. Indicators, models, and/or tools will be informed by community input regarding user needs.

    Timeframe: Annual

    Agency/Agencies: Health and Human Services Agency – Department of Public Health

    For More Details: Department of Public Health Climate Change and Health Equity; Change and Health Vulnerability Indicators for California

    Success Metric: Maintain webpage of health outcome research resources with plain language summaries; publish epidemiological studies examining human health impacts of climate-related stressors.

    Timeframe: Webpage update: every two years; publish studies: ongoing

    Agency/Agencies: Environmental Protection Agency – Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment

    For More Details: Human Health Impacts of Climate Change

    Success Metric: As new data become available, incorporate an understanding of climate impacts on human health in the Indicators of Climate Change in California report.

    Timeframe: 2026 and every four years thereafter; updates of plain-language summaries, as appropriate

    Agency/Agencies: Environmental Protection Agency – Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment

    For More Details: Indicators of Climate Change in California, 2022

  • Action 4 Support actionable, community-driven, and equitable research partnerships to inform and accelerate climate adaptation action based on best available climate science.

    Success Metric: California’s Fifth Climate Change Assessment research products are authored by diverse representatives, including practitioners, decision-makers, academics, community organizations, state agencies, California Native American tribes, local and regional governments, and others.

    Timeframe: 2025

    Agency/Agencies: Governor’s Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation,Formerly the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research – Planning and Policy, Strategic Growth Council | Natural Resources Agency – Energy Commission

    For More Details: California Climate Change Assessment; Climate Assessment, Science, and Research

    Success Metric: Research informs state and local plans, policies and investments measured by the number of references to Climate Assessment research products.

    Timeframe: Annual

    Agency/Agencies: Governor’s Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation, Formerly the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research – Planning and Policy, Strategic Growth Council | Natural Resources Agency – Energy Commission

    For More Details: California Climate Change Assessment

  • Action 5 Assist emergency managers and planners in identifying, locating, and deploying resources to populations at greater risk from climate impacts.

    Success Metric: Provide reliable and consistent access to quality, accurate data to ensure easy use of the California Access and Functional Needs Viewer (mapping tool) and other emergency planning tools that show disparate effects of climate impacts on Californians. These tools assist emergency managers in developing a better understanding of the access and functional needs to consider before, during, and after disasters and emergencies, especially those worsened by climate impacts.

    Timeframe: Ongoing

    Agency/Agencies: Governor’s Office of Emergency Services

    For More Details: Office of Emergency Services Web Map; Listos California Impact Report; My Hazards Planning Tool

  • Action 6 Document, in collaboration with California Native America tribes, the impacts of climate change on their health, their communities, traditional foods, cultural resources, and ecosystems.

    Success Metric: Release Indicators of Climate Change in California Report, including a section with chapters contributed by California Native American tribes on how they have been impacted by climate change and information based on tribal listening sessions; related videos featuring tribal perspectives on impacts released.

    Timeframe: 2026 and every four years thereafter; two additional tribal videos: 2025

    Agency/Agencies: Environmental Protection Agency - Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment

    For More Details: Indicators of Climate Change: Impacts on California Tribes

  • Action 7 Increase the understanding of impacts of climate change to cultural heritage in California, including Traditional cultural properties, to safeguard valued resources into the future.

    Success Metric: Develop a framework and conduct assessments of climate impacts to cultural heritage, sourced from the Cultural Resources Climate Change Task Force, partnerships, and community engaged efforts.

    Timeframe: 2026 and every two years thereafter

    Agency/Agencies: Natural Resources Agency – State Parks Office of Historic Preservation and participating Task Force agencies

    For More Details: Cultural Resources Climate Change Task Force

  • Action 8 Provide a public forum to increase understanding of both disproportionate community impacts due to inequities and community-driven solutions that advance climate resilience and health equity.

    Success Metric: Record at least two Public Health Workgroups; increase understanding of community-driven climate health equity solutions; make meeting recordings available online.

    Timeframe: Annual

    Agency/Agencies: Health and Human Services Agency – Department of Public Health | Environmental Protection Agency – Air Resources Board

    For More Details: Climate Change and Health Equity; Climate Action Team Public Health Workgroup Meetings

  • Action 9 Increase understanding of the effects of extreme heat on worker health and safety.

    Success Metric: Publish data on heath impacts of extreme heat, as well as research findings to identify risk factors and avenues for prevention of heat-related health outcomes among California workers.

    Timeframe: 2025, 2026, 2027

    Agency/Agencies: Health and Human Services Agency - Department of Public Health | Labor and Workforce Development Agency – Department of Industrial Relations, Division of Occupational Safety and Health

    For More Details: Occupational Health Branch; Cal/OSHA Heat Illness Prevention Guidance and Resources