Protecting natural resources, reducing risks, and adapting to changing conditions are essential for safe, sustainable communities. Healthy landscapes help reduce the impacts of disruptions, safeguard livelihoods, and provide a foundation for long-term stability.
The natural environment—our air, water, soil, and ecosystems—provides the foundation for every community. These systems are constantly shaped by natural processes and human activity, and when they are stressed or degraded, the impacts ripple through daily life.
We work with communities to protect these essential functions while also reducing the risks disruptions pose to people, livelihoods, and local environments. Our approach blends local knowledge, proven science, and nature-based solutions to create strategies that are both practical and lasting. By linking environmental health with community priorities, we help ensure that people and the places they depend on can thrive together for generations to come.
Example Projects
- Earthquake Preparedness Workshops
- Wildfire Preparedness Modules and Workshops
- Household Response to Wildfire Evacuations
- Valley County Risk and Resilience Web Tool
- City of Hailey Climate Risk and Vulnerability Assessment
- Climate and the Western Range
- Vulnerability in National Parks
- Natural Hazard Information and Household Preparedness
- Flood Risk in Idaho
- The Idaho Resilience Tool
- Valley County All-Hazards Mitigation Plan Update
HCRI Pillars
Built Environment Health & Well-being Economy & Society
The HCRI research pillars capture the interconnection between and amongst disciplines, highlighting the dynamic and multifaceted nature of community resilience. Our goal in promoting these pillars is the foster connections and collaborations between disciplines and across sectors.
Natural Environment
The health of our plance, natural resources natural hazards, risk, risk education, and climate change.
Economy and Society
Economic and social conditions that (1) allow communities to prepare for, respond to and recover form adverse natural events and economic shocks, and (2) foster thriving, healthy communities.
Built Environment
Reliability and strength of critical infrastructure (communications, power grid, buildings built to hazard code), and systems faciliators or inhibitors to improve or build stronger infrastructure (e.g., capital, policy).
Health and Well-being
Environmental and social conditions that foster healthy thriving communities.