Get Involved: Seattle’s new Climate Ready Curriculum to help communities prepare for extreme weather and more climate action opportunities 

Hot sunny days and irregular weather have officially hit Seattle for the summer. It’s not just you — yes, it feels hotter and more unpredictable each year due to climate change. While we work to reduce the emissions that cause climate change in the long term, we are also preparing communities for the climate impacts they are already experiencing.  

Climate change comes with hotter summers, warmer winters, and more severe impacts like flooding, extreme heat, and wildfire smoke. We prioritize our climate resilience efforts in communities hit first and worst, including Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) communities, people with low incomes, outdoor workers, youth and elders, and people with disabilities. 

We’re excited to introduce Seattle’s new Climate Ready Curriculum, designed by community for community, to help neighbors prepare for climate change. The curriculum also advances the goals of Seattle’s Climate Action Plan, which will prioritize building community resilience and show that solutions must happen at all scales.  

We’re updating the Climate Action Plan and want you to help shape it! Take our survey, available in six languages. 

Introducing the Climate Ready Curriculum

Co-created by several community organizations, the Climate Ready Curriculum is free, live, and ready to help you prepare yourself and your community for climate threats specific to Seattle. You can use the curriculum to teach a group or review it yourself. We designed it for diverse ages, backgrounds, and levels of preparedness.  

After reviewing the three modules in the curriculum, you’ll have knowledge of:   

• How to prepare yourself and your neighbors for wildfire smoke, extreme heat, extreme winter weather, and extreme rain and flooding. 

• How to stay safe and protect your health during these climate hazards. 

• Where to find additional free resources, services, and information to make sure you’re prepared. 

One of the ways the City of Seattle builds resilience is through investments in community-led solutions. Over the course of two years, we developed the curriculum in collaboration with organizations serving communities closest to climate change impacts, including South Park and Georgetown in the Duwamish Valley.  

We are grateful to have brought this resource to life with our partners! Many thanks to Basilica Bio, Cham Refugees Community, Duwamish River Community Coalition, Lake City Collective, El Centro de la Raza, Young Women Empowered, Windz of Change Alliance, and Triangle Associates. 

The curriculum includes guides, interactive activities, discussion opportunities, and additional information that will be available in Spanish, Khmer, Somali, and Vietnamese in July on our website. 

The curriculum includes three modules, each focused on a specific climate-related impact: Extreme Heat & Wildfire Smoke, Extreme Winter Weather, Extreme Rain & Flooding.

In each module, you will find: 

• The purpose of that module, key vocabulary words, ideas for related activities, tips to teach the module to groups, frequently asked questions about that climate impact, and additional resources. 

• A step-by-step facilitator guide to prepare you to teach the content to groups, including group and individual activities, a list of materials needed, and suggested room setup. 

• A presentation designed for facilitators to use when they teach the module. 

• A series of graphics and visuals for each activity. 

We hope you find the curriculum useful and will share this free resource with your community! 

More Ways to Engage with Climate Action 

Seattle’s Climate Action Plan will chart a bold course for us to reduce pollution and build a healthier and more resilient city for everyone. Take our 10-minute survey and share it with your community!  

Your answers could highlight a community-led climate solution that the City can support, show us ways to build community climate resilience, or help us discover something new. 

We’re also bringing the survey to communities across our city. We’ve partnered with the Department of Neighborhoods Community Liaisons, trusted community connectors who are reaching community members across Seattle in the languages they speak at home. Liaisons are conducting outreach and completing surveys in five languages: Chinese, Tagalog, Somali, Spanish, and Vietnamese.  

Looking for funding to advance climate resilience in your community? Interested community groups and organizations have just a few more weeks to complete the Environmental Justice (EJ) Fund eligibility step by July 14! The EJ Fund supports projects led by or in partnership with frontline communities. For the first time, it will offer funding over two years rather than 18 months, with up to $1.6 million available. 

And get our latest climate updates by signing up for our special Climate Action Plan newsletter! Visit the Office of Emergency Management for emergency prepardness tips for you and your community.