October 2025

The Resilience Roundup highlights announcements and events along with links to the previous month's state, regional, and national resilience news. 

Learn more about CIRCA at circa.uconn.edu

and the Resilient Connecticut Project at resilientconnecticut.uconn.edu

CIRCA Resilient Connecticut Summit 2025

Weathering Change: Building Connecticut's Resilient Future

November 13, 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.

Location: UConn Avery Point Campus, Branford House, 1080 Shennecossett Road,

Groton, CT 06340

The Connecticut Institute for Resilience and Climate Adaptation is hosting a one-day conference at the Branford House at UConn Avery Point in Groton. Please join us to work toward a more Resilient Connecticut! View the agenda and register for the event HERE, registration closes November 3.

CIRCA's Connecticut Climate Report Update Webinar Recording

As part of Connecticut’s second annual Sustainability and Resiliency Week, CIRCA hosted a webinar featuring Executive Director Jim O’Donnell and Research Associate Marc de Vos with an update on the Connecticut Climate Report. The webinar shared CIRCA’s evaluation of high-fidelity climate projections against observations from seven locations around the state, offering insights into how global and regional climate trends translate at the Connecticut scale. Findings show high reliability in projections of daily minimum temperatures, mixed reliability in daily maximum temperatures and average wind speeds, and low reliability in daily average rainfall. These results highlight both the value and limits of state-scale projections and their importance in guiding local decisions about extreme weather risk mitigation and climate adaptation. To view the webinar recording, click HERE. 

East Hartford Final Report Available

CIRCA has been working with the Town of East Hartford and AECOM to address flooding and extreme heat concerns in Downtown East Hartford. The East Hartford Flood Control (Levee) System provides some flood protection from the Connecticut River, but stormwater flooding remains a concern. Downtown East Hartford reportedly experiences road flooding during rain events at the railroad underpass. Flooding presents public safety challenges to residents of the Town, as residents sometimes attempt to drive through floodwaters near the railroad underpass. East Hartford is also vulnerable to extreme heat. This is attributed primarily to the high social sensitivity within the community, combined with dense development, impervious surfaces, disconnected green spaces for mitigating high heat impacts, and an absence of nearby formal cooling centers and/or shelters with enough capacity for numbers of people to comfortably occupy space. To review the final project report, which contains information on the area and concepts to mitigate the flooding and extreme heat, click HERE.

Announcements

DEEP Approves Three-Year Energy Savings Plan for Connecticut

The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) has issued its Final Determination on the 2025-2027 Conservation and Load Management (C&LM) Plan, a comprehensive strategy which guides the priorities, design, and incentives for Connecticut’s energy efficiency and demand management programs. 

Grants

Connecticut Hazard Mitigation Grant Program

Application Deadline: October

The Connecticut Division of Emergency Management and Homeland Security is pleased to announce that the Hazard Mitigation Grant Application Period is accepting applications or letters of intent These grant opportunities provide funding for projects aimed at reducing the impact of natural disasters within your communities.

CT DEEP: Open Space and Watershed Land Acquisition Grant Program

Application Deadline: November 3

The Open Space and Watershed Land Acquisition (OSWA) Grant Program provides financial assistance to municipalities and nonprofit land conservation organizations to acquire land for open space, and to water companies to acquire land to be classified as Class I or Class II water supply property. Awards are granted to projects that offer the highest conservation and recreational value and that leverage the greatest percentage of private and municipal funding. The Department also accepts applications from distressed municipalities under the Urban Green and Community Garden Program.

Long Island Sound Community Impact Fund 2026 RFA

Letters of Intent Due: November 21, 2025, by 4:00 p.m. EST. 

The Long Island Sound Community Impact Fund (LISCIF) is a partnership among Restore America’s Estuaries, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the Long Island Sound Partnership. The purpose of LISCIF is to provide technical and financial assistance to communities for addressing environmental issues and to improve the quality and accessibility of the Long Island Sound. Technical assistance will be provided through LISCIF and is available to communities/organizations even if one does not submit a proposal for funding.  This is the third round of LISCIF funding. Up to $1,200,000 in competitive funding will be awarded to support projects in New York and Connecticut. Project proposals must incorporate Actions of the Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan (CCMP).  

Connecticut Land Conservation Council: Land & Easement

Acquisition Program (LEAP)

Applications will be due throughout the calendar year on the 1st of every other month, beginning on March 1.

CLCC's LEAP grant program empowers land trusts to swiftly secure critical conservation lands by providing financial support for land and conservation easement acquisitions. Launched in 2025, LEAP (formerly known as Land Capital Grants) is designed to bridge funding gaps and accelerate the protection of valuable conservation lands. The program builds upon CLCC’s successful track record of supporting land conservation efforts through its Transaction Assistance Grant Program, Connecticut Conservation Partnership Program, and Climate Smart Land Stewardship Program.

CT DEEP: Urban Green and Community Gardens Grant Program

Application Deadline: December 17, 2025

The Department's Urban Green and Community Gardens Grant Program (UGCG) is available to distressed municipalities, targeted investment communities, registered non-profit organizations, and municipalities that are an environmental justice community. The program provides funding assistance to develop or enhance urban green spaces for public enjoyment and/or environmental education. Promotion of open space in an urban setting may include, but may not be limited to, the development of a community garden or reclaiming and enhancing existing open space for the public's use. Grants are awarded to projects that demonstrate the highest ability to benefit urban communities in close proximity to population centers.

DEEP's CT Recreational Trails Grants Program

Application Deadline: December 18, 2025

Established in 2015, per CGS Section 23-103, as amended by Public Act No. 15-190, to provide funding to any private nonprofit organizations, municipalities, state departments and tribal governments in support of trail projects. Grant amounts vary and will depend upon the availability of currently uncommitted state funds. Requests should be less than 1 million dollars. Grants can pay up to 80% of total project costs, a 20% match is required. 

USDA: Emergency Community Water Assistance Grants in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island

Application Deadline: Rolling

This program supports rural communities, nonprofits, and federally recognized tribes in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island that need help preparing for or recovering from an emergency that threatens safe, reliable drinking water. Eligible areas are rural towns with populations of 10,000 or less, tribal lands in rural areas, or colonias with household incomes below the state’s non-metro median. Funding may be used for waterline repairs, new wells, treatment plants, or other improvements to restore or secure water supplies. Applications are accepted year-round through your local USDA Rural Development office or online.

CT DEEPs Climate Resilience Fund Webinar

October 3, 10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.

As part of Connecticut’s Sustainability and Resiliency Week, please join Commissioner Dykes and DEEP staff for a webinar at 10 am on Friday, October 3 to learn more about the DEEP Climate Resilience Fund (DCRF), a grant program that supports municipalities and other entities to develop projects that will make Connecticut’s communities more resilient. During this webinar, we’ll discuss the history of DEEP’s resilience funding programs, the funding landscape for climate resilience in Connecticut, and make an exciting announcement about the future of DCRF.

Connecticut DEEP Climate Action Planning Public Meeting and

Opportunity for Public Comment

October 8, 12:00 p.m. - 1:30 p.m.

Help Connecticut shape its path to net-zero by 2050! Join the Department of Energy & Environmental Protection’s upcoming virtual public meeting to review progress towards the state’s climate goals and proposed strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and share your climate implementation action priorities. Your voice will help build a more affordable, resilient, and low-carbon future for Connecticut.

Extreme Weather and Our Watershed Webinar Series 2025: Drought

October 17, 12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m.

Please join the Connecticut Water Planning Council's Outreach and Education Workgroup for a continuation of the Extreme Weather and Our Watershed Webinar Series 2025.  The series will wrap up this fall with two workshops centered on the impacts of extreme weather on drinking water quality. This final workshop will focus on drought and its impacts on water quality, including challenges with algal blooms and cyanobacteria.  

UConn Center for Land Use Education and Research (CLEAR) - Mapping Water in CT, Part 2: The 3D Hydrography Program: Modernizing the Nation’s Water Data Infrastructure

October 23, 1:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m.

In this second installment of a three-part webinar series, CLEAR will explore the U.S. Geological Survey’s (USGS) effort to remap the Nation’s hydrography through the 3D Hydrography Program (3DHP) and why now is the time for this significant change.

Yale Center for Environmental Justice: 7th Annual Yale

Global Environmental Justice Conference

October 31, 8:30 a.m. - November 1, 6:00 p.m. EDT

Location: Yale School of the Environment - 195 Prospect Street New Haven, CT 06511

The deep dismantling underway in 2025 calls for an equally deep rebuilding—one that centers environmental justice, prioritizes historically marginalized communities, and ensures equitable access to clean air, water, land, and decision-making power. People yearn for and need a modernization of these crucial intersections, comprising new concepts and laws for an emerging era of integrated solutions. That is why the Yale Center for Environmental Justice is thrilled to invite you to Environmental Joy 2025: Writing the Future.

2025 Yale Clean Energy Conference



November 6 - November 8

Location: Yale School of Management - 165 Whitney Ave, New Haven, CT 06511

A leading global forum for energy access, finance, technology, policy, and careers. Join hundreds of attendees from countless sectors, organizations, universities, and industries for this flagship event in New Haven, Connecticut. Get your ticket to the Conference and experience the keynotes, workshops, pitches, network building activities, and lively discussions for yourself!

UConn Center for Land Use Education and Research (CLEAR) - Mapping Water in CT, Part 3: Regional Stormwater Mapping Support: From MS4 to SB9 (PA 25-33)

November 13, 1:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m.

In this final installment of a three-part webinar series on mapping water in CT, CLEAR will talk about WestCOG's experience providing mapping support to towns working to meet their obligations under the MS4 permit. They'll cover the logistics of mapping stormwater infrastructure, data structure, outputs, lessons learned, and how these efforts can carry forward into the culvert mapping requirements of Public Act 25-33. They'll also touch on ongoing MS4 coordination work being carried out by the regional Councils of Governments.

Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) - A New Tool for Realizing the Potential of Nature-Based Solutions: U.S. Nature4Communities

In 2022, USN4C released its “Decision-Makers Guide to Natural Climate Solutions” to connect decision-makers with information on natural climate solutions and their impacts. Recently, USN4C unveiled a new tool, “Nature4Communities,” building on their guide to provide decision-makers with examples of how nature-based solutions are being implemented in communities across the nation. Francis Smeins, digital communications and events manager at USN4C, explained that Nature4Communities is designed to “summarize all the information that's already out there and help advocates package this information in a way that is useful for them.” Click HERE to access the tool!

New Haven Continues Flood Mitigation Efforts Despite FEMA Cuts

Yale Daily News - September 4, 2025

By 2050, New Haven can expect to see up to 20 inches of sea level rise from the late-20th century average, according to estimates from the Connecticut Institute for Resilience & Climate Adaptation, or CIRCA. But it might not take that long for New Haven residents to feel the water rising. “Before New Haven is submerged, the losses due to this more frequent flooding will have driven people to move,” James O’Donnell, executive director of CIRCA, said.

Open House to Discuss Flood Control Plans in City

New Britain Herald - September 8, 2025

NEW BRITAIN — Residents will have the opportunity to hear updates on flood control plans for the Piper Brook and Webster Brook corridor. State Rep. Gary Turco shared an upcoming open house, scheduled for Thursday from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at Alvarium Beer Company, 365 John Downey Drive, New Britain. An overview presentation is scheduled to start at 5:30 p.m. The event is part of the Resilient CT Piper Brook and Webster Brook Project, which is connected to the Connecticut Institute for Resilience & Climate Adaptation (CIRCA) program. The program is designed to develop flood strategies that respond to challenges faced by residents and businesses along the two brooks. The project includes Newington, Berlin and New Britain.

What You Need to Know About AI and Climate Change

Yale Climate Connections - September 4, 2025

Is AI saving the world or breaking it? As the era-defining technology leapfrogs from what-if to what-next, it can be hard for us humans to know what to make of it all. You might be hopeful and excited, or existentially concerned, or both. AI can track Antarctic icebergs 10,000 times faster than humans and optimize renewable energy grids in real time – capabilities that could help us fight climate change. But it also consumes incredible amounts of energy, and ever more of it, creating a whole new level of climate pollution that threatens to undermine those benefits.

Can Bipartisan Support in Congress Save NOAA From White House Cuts?

Inside Climate News - September 13, 2025

Both House and Senate lawmakers have advanced bills rejecting the Trump administration’s proposal to eliminate climate research at the weather agency. To understand the bipartisan support that has emerged in Congress for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, it only takes a glance at the list of stakeholders who have been lobbying to save the embattled agency from the Trump administration’s budget knife. Those who fish the oceans and those who ship goods over their waves, officials who maintain dams and those who manage drinking water systems, the insurance industry and a slew of universities from red and blue states alike have all made the case for maintaining NOAA funding this year.

The Resilience Roundup highlights CIRCA's presence in the news, provides links to recent local/state/national news articles related to resilience and adaptation, and announces upcoming events and seminars.

The Connecticut Institute for Resilience and Climate Adaptation's (CIRCA) mission is to increase the resilience and sustainability of vulnerable communities along Connecticut's coast and inland waterways to the growing impacts of climate change and extreme weather on the natural, built, and human environment. The institute is located at the University of Connecticut's Avery Point campus and includes faculty from across the university. CIRCA is a partnership between UConn and the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (CT DEEP).