Improving climate resilience in New York City

Communities across New York City are feeling the strain of a rapidly changing climate. Like many cities around the world, New York faced record heat waves this summer that pushed temperatures into dangerous territory. Floods that once came once in a generation now arrive regularly. At the same time, rising energy prices and aging infrastructure burden families and small businesses already struggling to stay afloat.

New York has set some of the most ambitious climate goals in the country, targeting 70% renewable electricity by 2030 and deep emissions cuts across buildings and transportation. But hitting those goals requires action at the local neighborhood level, block by block, building by building. New York needs a consistent, community-led approach for coordinating sustainability efforts, securing and deploying resources, engaging residents, and delivering measurable change.

The city already has a proven model for neighborhood-scale governance and improvement: the Business Improvement District (BID). For decades, BIDs have transformed commercial corridors by organizing local businesses, raising funds, and maintaining cleaner, safer districts. Now, we should adapt this powerful tool for the most urgent challenge of our time.

New York City should lead the nation in launching Sustainable Improvement Districts (SIDs) to bring the same level of coordination, accountability, and local leadership to climate and sustainability initiatives. While BIDs focus on economic vitality and public-realm maintenance, SIDs would target the environmental and resilience needs of specific neighborhoods, whether that’s reducing energy bills in Crown Heights, expanding tree canopies in the South Bronx, piloting e-bike infrastructure in Jackson Heights, or installing flood resilience projects in Lower Manhattan.

Like BIDs, SIDs would be locally led, community-driven initiatives with dedicated local leadership representing residents, small businesses, property owners, cultural institutions, schools, faith groups, and sustainability experts. Each SID would develop a district sustainability plan, secure funding from private, philanthropic, and public sources, and deliver targeted programs year-round. The districts would serve as neighborhood-level engines for climate adaptation, public health improvement, and cost-saving energy upgrades.

The strength of SIDs lies in their flexibility. No two neighborhoods face the same environmental challenges, and no two SIDs should look identical. Each district would choose 6–8 priority initiatives from a menu of proven sustainability interventions:

1. Building Retrofits

2. Community Renewable Energy Projects

3. EV Charging & Clean Mobility

4. Green Streets & Spaces

5. Waste Reduction & Circular Systems

6. Climate Resilience & Heat Mitigation

7. Community Air Quality Monitoring

8. Local Food & Urban Agriculture

9. Green Job Training

10. Arts & Culture Programming

11. Green Business Practice Adoption

12. Community Education, Engagement, & Advocacy

Taken together, these interventions would help neighborhoods lower emissions, save on energy bills, prepare for extreme weather, and improve everyday quality of life.

Some neighborhoods might choose to prioritize cooling infrastructure and flood mitigation. Others might focus on rooftop solar, composting, or green-job training for young people. Some districts could emphasize more street trees, bioswales, shade structures while others tackle building retrofits or launch community solar gardens. By design, SIDs would be locally tailored yet citywide in scale, enabling rapid deployment of climate solutions where they are most needed.

SIDs would also be ideal partners for federal and state programs and funding. By organizing neighborhoods into capable, accountable units, the future funding could be deployed in ways that reflect local priorities.

New York City is famous for its patchwork of neighborhoods, each with its own character, challenges, and leadership. Climate change demands a response that recognizes this diversity while matching it with infrastructure, coordination, and investment. Sustainable Improvement Districts offer a practical, proven, community-first model for accelerating progress.