In 2025, the Race to Resilience Culture (RTRC) initiative, led by ICLEI USA and ICLEI Africa, reached a milestone, demonstrating that culture and heritage are essential pillars of global climate resilience. Supported by The Mellon Foundation through the Climate Heritage Network, RTRC delivered measurable impact in cities, influenced international policy, and strengthened community-led adaptation strategies. These achievements highlight the strategic value of the initiative and the need for continued investment to scale this pioneering work.

Heritage secures a global climate seat

This year marked unprecedented alignment between climate policy and on-the-ground cultural action. Heritage was formally recognized in both the Global Goal on Adaptation (GGA) and the Action Agenda; five of the 59 Belém Adaptation Indicators adopted at COP30 support the GGA’s cultural heritage target; and RTRC contributed to Activation Group 19, “Culture, Cultural Heritage Protection and Climate Action,” shaping the granary of solutions presented at COP30. These milestones clearly show how culture is moving from the margins to the center of global adaptation policy.

Global spotlight: COP30 & beyond

RTRC’s work was featured across major platforms throughout 2025, including:

• Speaking contributions at COP30, including the session Race to Resilience from Pledges to Implementation at the Resilience Hub.
• Two cultural-heritage focused sessions at the Africa Climate Summit 2, spotlighting culture-based adaptation and climate finance.
• Release of three milestone progress reports, strengthening evidence on culture-driven resilience.

This visibility amplified the message that culture is not peripheral, but rather foundational to equitable climate action.

Local governments leading a new global movement

This year, the RTRC cohort became the world’s first network of cities actively embedding culture and heritage into climate resilience planning. Across the African continent and the United States, cities advanced groundbreaking approaches:

• Hargeisa, Somaliland, applied the Photovoice participatory method, empowering residents to document flash flood impacts and cultural coping systems. The initiative strengthened interdepartmental collaboration and aligned local planning with national development priorities.
• Harare, Zimbabwe, is implementing the Resilient Markets, Resilient Communities project, blending cultural practices with clean energy, waste-to-energy innovations, and public-health improvements in iconic markets like Mbare.
• Sekondi–Takoradi, Ghana has advanced the Cultural and Heritage – Based Approach: A tool for Sustainable Community Resilience (CHASCR) in Sekondi – Takoradi initiative — by digitizing cultural assets, establishing heritage clubs, and integrating culture and heritage into climate education, adaptation strategies and inclusive local economic development. These components have now been fully incorporated into the Metropolitan Assembly’s Climate Action Plan and the Medium-Term Development Plan (MTDP) 2026–2029.
• Msunduzi, South Africa, added a new culture and heritage goal to its Climate Action Plan, protecting cultural landmarks and integrating traditional knowledge into adaptation infrastructure.
• San Diego embedded equitable, culturally informed engagement in its updated Climate Action Plan.
• San Antonio developed a Climate Heritage Strategic Plan anchored in its Climate Equity Screening Tool.
• Blaine County, Idaho, conducted one of the most culturally rich climate assessments in the country, using workshops, youth art, food bank interviews and neighborhood storytelling to democratize climate dialogue.

Each city demonstrated that community voice, cultural identity and lived experience are powerful drivers of lasting resilience.

Growing knowledge, learning and creative exchange

RTRC hosted 10 thematic webinars this year, strengthening municipal capacity to integrate culture and heritage into climate adaptation. An international artist exchange is planned for early 2026, connecting creators from San José (USA) and uMhlathuze (South Africa) to explore climate storytelling and creative cultural expression. These activities reinforce the role of arts and culture in driving effective, locally rooted climate solutions.

A year that signals what’s possible with continued support

The impact of RTRC is clear: Cities are transforming climate policy, communities are reclaiming cultural knowledge, and global frameworks are recognizing heritage as integral to adaptation. This progress has only been possible through strategic partnership and philanthropic support.

To carry this momentum forward—and to meet the ambitions of the new “Heritage Adapts! 3000 × 2030” campaign—continued investment is essential. With additional support, RTRC can expand this groundbreaking network, deepen city-to-city collaboration, and continue shaping global adaptation policy through community-centered, culturally grounded action.

With sustained investment, RTRC can scale city-to-city collaboration, deepen community-led solutions, and ensure that culture remains central to global adaptation, proving that climate resilience is strongest when it grows from the ground up.

Relevant dates:

• 26 March 2025 – RTRC virtual learning cohort launched
• February 2026 – End of RTRC inaugural Cohort
• April 2026 – RTRC Academy launched
• September 2026 –  RTRC Academy concluded

* This article was written by Marisa Kellogg, Senior Program Officer, ICLEI USA, and Meagen Swain, Professional Officer: Climate Change, Energy & Resilience, ICLEI Africa.