Resilience in cities is often framed around large-scale infrastructure projects and sweeping policy shifts. We see headlines about billion-dollar climate adaptation plans, smart cities leveraging AI for disaster response and ambitious net-zero pledges. But some of the most impactful solutions emerge not from top-down planning, but from grassroots efforts—small, community-led initiatives that, when scaled, transform the resilience of entire neighborhoods and sometimes cities too.

The Power of Local Interventions

In cities around the world, residents are proving that urban resilience isn’t just about major initiatives and investments—it’s about many small, replicable actions accumulating to create systems change. A single community garden might seem insignificant, but multiply that by a hundred, and suddenly, a neighborhood has enhanced food security, increased green space and strengthened community ownership.

For example, Havana, Cuba, offers one of the most remarkable examples of community-driven urban agriculture: Faced with severe food shortages and economic isolation following the collapse of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s, Havana’s residents transformed vacant lots, rooftops and roadside plots into productive spaces. What began as a grassroots survival strategy grew into a citywide movement. Havana is now home to over 8,000 urban farms and gardens and annually produces between 50-100% of the city’s fresh produce. Known as organopónicos, this system of urban farms now receives institutional support and continues to be a model of how small-scale, low-input urban farming can be both climate-resilient and empowering.

Another example is Bangkok’s Bang Bua Canal initiative. Once a flood-prone and polluted area, the neighborhood’s residents formed a cooperative to restore their local waterway. They built floating gardens, stabilized canal banks and created small-scale flood barriers. Their efforts not only reduced local flooding but improved water quality and revitalized local businesses dependent on the canal, increasing property values.

Micro-Level Solutions Can Lead to Macro-Level Impact

Resilience isn’t just about surviving disasters—it’s about adapting and thriving despite them. Many successful initiatives rely on bottom-up local action. 

In Jakarta, community groups, such as Ciliwung Merdeka, have taken the lead in building decentralized rainwater harvesting systems in flood-prone areas. By collecting rainwater for reuse, these micro-projects help reduce pressure on the city’s overburdened drainage systems while providing clean water for households. Each household with a rainwater harvesting system could potentially save an estimated $200 per year on water costs while reducing strain on the municipal supply. Scaling this across thousands of homes has prevented millions of liters of stormwater from overwhelming Jakarta’s drainage system.

Similarly, in Barcelona, Superblocks have transformed congested neighborhoods into pedestrian-friendly zones. While the initiative started as a city-led vision, its success has depended on local buy-in. Residents have taken the lead in shaping public spaces, introducing greenery and organizing community events that enhance urban livability.

Lessons for US Cities: Scaling Small Wins for Collective Resilience

Despite international success stories, many U.S. cities still lean heavily on top-down, infrastructure-heavy resilience strategies, such as constructing massive seawalls to guard against rising sea levels or building billion-dollar stormwater tunnels to manage flooding. While these approaches can be effective, they are often costly, slow to implement and may overlook the needs and voices of local communities. A shift is needed—one that recognizes the value of bottom-up resilience-building. Here’s how:

Fund micro-grants for grassroots resilience.

Many communities already have ideas and momentum but lack financial resources. Cities can establish micro-grants to support local projects like urban farms, rain gardens and community-led cooling hubs. Programs like New York City’s Green Infrastructure Grant Program have already helped small businesses and community groups install green roofs and rain gardens, reducing stormwater runoff by millions of gallons annually.

Leverage nature-based solutions at the neighborhood level.

Programs like Philadelphia’s Green City, Clean Waters show that small-scale green infrastructure—bioswales, tree pits and rain gardens—can collectively mitigate climate risks when adopted citywide. The initiative has helped support 940 jobs annually and generate $48 million in tax revenues for Philadelphia. 

Make resilience participatory.

Community-led adaptation planning ensures solutions are culturally relevant and sustainable. New Orleans’ Gentilly Resilience District integrates local voices into stormwater management, making adaptation a shared responsibility. Homeowners participating in the city’s rain garden program have seen reductions of up to 40% in their flood insurance costs.

Small Climate Actions, Big Economic Benefits

Investing in community-driven resilience isn’t just a social good—it makes financial sense. Studies show that every dollar spent on climate resilience and preparedness saves communities $13 in damages, cleanup costs and economic impact. Small interventions require lower upfront costs but yield high returns in reduced climate risk and improved public health.

For example, California’s Cool Roof program, which incentivizes residents to install reflective roofing, has helped reduce indoor temperatures by 2-3 degrees F, cutting air conditioning costs by up to 30% during heat waves. And in Michigan, what started as a small community effort to help Detroit’s farmers and gardeners, Keep Growing Detroit now supports over 2,200 gardens and farms across the city. In 2023 alone, program participants—primarily families and local growers engaged in the Garden Resource Program—collectively harvested fresh produce via distribution of over 300,000 transplants and nearly 68,000 seed packs, enhancing household food security and helping participants save on grocery costs.

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The most resilient cities of the future won’t be defined by massive infrastructure alone; they will be shaped by thousands of interconnected local actions, including initiatives by residents, neighborhoods and grassroots groups responding to their unique challenges. These small efforts may not always make headlines, but when multiplied, they can shift systems, spark policy change and build collective resilience from the ground up.

Mahak Agrawal is Board Member for the International Tunnelling & Underground Space Association’s Committee on Underground Space (ITACUS) and Founder of the All Bits Count (ABC) initiative.