Climate action, finance, and justice in small and midsize cities in the USA

本项目考察了美国中小城市的气候行动。气候政策和项目的收益和成本对居民的影响不同。该项目促进了对中小城市为减缓气候变化所做的工作、它们如何为这些行动付出代价以及对司法的关注是否以及如何影响政策制定的认识。该项目确定了为城市气候行动提供资金、促进城市气候政策和项目公平性的共同做法、挑战和战略创新。城市政府、气候行动网络、社区组织和对城市气候行动感兴趣的公众都对这些信息感兴趣。此外，该项目还为本科生、研究生和博士后研究员提供教育和培训机会。它还支持编写关于混合方法研究和城市气候治理的教材。20多年来，城市一直是气候行动的重要场所。学者和实践者指出，有必要了解气候计划和政策是如何在实地发挥作用的。虽然大多数传统研究集中在大城市，但本项目调查了中小城市气候行动的实施、资金和融资以及正义政治。调查人员解决了关于气候行动的三组问题：(1)中小城市在实施气候行动政策和计划方面采取了哪些行动，以及他们如何在这些努力中解决对正义和公平的关注？(2)中小城市如何为气候行动买单，这些资金如何影响气候政策和项目的实施？(3)在中小城市关于气候行动的辩论和决策中，对正义和公平的关注是如何发挥作用的？为此，调查人员调查了美国250个中小城市的城市工作人员；收集和分析城市预算、资本支出报告和其他财务文件；并对城市绿化和建筑性能标准两种减缓气候变化做法的实施进行深入的案例比较研究。在与现有的大城市气候行动文献的对话中，研究结果支持了对与美国各种规模城市相关的城市气候行动和正义的更复杂和更有力的理解。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This project examines climate action in small and midsize cities in the United States (US). Climate policies and programs have benefits and costs that impact residents differently. This project advances knowledge about what small and midsize cities are doing to slow climate change, how they are paying for those actions, and if and how concerns about justice influence policy development. The project identifies common practices, challenges, and innovations in strategies to finance urban climate action and promote equity in urban climate policies and programs. This information is of interest to city governments, climate action networks, community-based organizations, and members of the general public interested in urban climate action. In addition, the project provides educational and training opportunities for undergraduates, graduate students, and a postdoctoral researcher. It also supports the development of teaching materials on mixed-methods research and urban climate governance.Cities have been important sites of climate action for more than two decades. Scholars and practitioners have pointed to the need to understand how climate plans and policies play out on the ground. While most conventional studies focused on big cities, this project investigates the implementation, funding and financing, and justice politics of climate action in small and midsize cities. The investigators address three sets of questions about climate action: (1) What actions are small and midsize cities taking to implement climate action policies and programs, and how do they address concerns about justice and equity in these efforts? (2) How are small and midsize cities paying for climate action, and how does that financing influence what climate policies and programs are implemented? (3) How do concerns about justice and equity come into play in debates and decisions about climate action in small and midsize cities? To do so, the investigators survey city staff in 250 small and midsize cities across the US; collect and analyze city budgets, capital expenditure reports, and other financial documents; and conduct in-depth comparative case studies of the implementation of two climate mitigation practices, urban greening, and building performance standards. In conversation with the existing literature on climate action in large cities, the research findings support a more complex and robust understanding of urban climate action and justice relevant to US cities of all sizes.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.