The goal of the Dover Building Coastal Resilience by Building Equity project was to engage Dover’s historically underserved communities (HUCs) in climate change conversations. HUCs are often disproportionately vulnerable to climate change impacts such as sea level rise, coastal flooding, freshwater availability, and urban heat island effects. The project, funded through a Resilience Municipal Planning Grant, aimed to identify these vulnerable members of the community in order to include their history, perspectives, and voices, as well as to diversify input the City currently receives related to climate adaptation planning. The project team interviewed service providers to learn more about their clientele to more effectively approach direct engagement with their target population and build a foundation of trust. The team held workshops with residents at two Dover Housing Authority locations and students in the Dover Adult Learning Center’s Civics class to integrate their experiences into recommendations to the City.

Recommendations were supplemented and contextualized by additional data visualizations including a 23-part map set and evaluation of the City’s core planning documents. The team held a wrap-up meeting and invited everyone from the outreach network they developed to comment on and prioritize the list of recommendations and related actions. A survey was sent out for those who couldn’t attend the meeting; feedback from these activities were incorporated into recommendations to the city to ensure everyone’s voices were accurately represented. The final map set can be viewed on this page.