Catastrophic floods — such as those caused by Hurricane Harvey — are on the rise, especially in the East and Midwest. Climate change, which brings supercharged storms and sea-level rise as well as searing drought, is making these problems harder to solve. And low-income communities are hit “first and worst” by every kind of water crisis.

What role can philanthropy play in solving these complex and costly problems? A new analysis, the Climate Resilient & Equitable Water Systems Capital Scan, shows that private foundations can accelerate solutions like green infrastructure and disaster preparedness. And with integrated investments and grantmaking, funders can stimulate the flow of capital to address our nation’s systemic water challenges.

The scan identifies opportunities to use new models, catalyze markets, leverage capital and understand risk. Six high-impact investments emerge as priorities:

  • Green infrastructure: including bioswales, permeable pavement, wetlands and rooftop gardens — is an excellent solution for urban stormwater management, and provides important health and community co-benefits.
  • Planning and preparedness: specifically for water management and resilience in the face of climate impacts, is critical for mitigating the damage caused by floods.
  • Water monitoring, including real-time and static monitoring of water use and system stressors, can flag threats to water quality or quantity while improving efficiency.
  • Energy efficiency reduces the power needed to move water from source to end user, lowering costs and cutting greenhouse gas emissions from energy generation.
  • Water efficiency makes the best use of scarce resources by reducing leaks and offering incentives to save water.
  • Distributed treatment and supply options — such as rainwater harvesting, greywater reuse and desalination — can keep the taps flowing in a building or neighborhood, even when larger water systems are shut down.

Read the full article about how philanthropy can help the water crisis from Urban Resilience Project at Medium.