Strengthening global development and a climate-resilient world must begin with strong policies for housing resilience. Housing is more than a basic need; it's the cornerstone upon which communities thrive, economies flourish, and the world evolves towards an equitable and sustainable future.
What We Do – Policy
Build Change is the trusted advisor among governments, multilateral institutions, and non-governmental organizations working on climate and disaster-resilient housing and schools around the world.
We drive resilience, addressing the root causes of vulnerable housing in both pre-disaster prevention and post-disaster reconstruction contexts through policy influence, regulatory frameworks, financial access, engineering design and technology platforms.
Our work has influenced global agendas, housing policies, access to financing, building codes, and construction industry practices in 29 countries with over 140 partners.
Our work takes place through global campaigns and national and local housing policy advocacy.
National and Local Housing Policy
Build Change’s resilient housing expertise supports public, private, and civil society stakeholders to identify, design, and implement effective policies and projects. We have influenced housing policy and regulation in the following countries:
China: Implementing homeowner-driven housing reconstruction
Colombia: Building guideline for retrofitting existing housing, increasing and bundling housing subsidies, streamlining the permit process, supporting the first regulation on upgrading informal housing
Guatemala: Building guideline for retrofitting existing housing, influencing neighborhood improvement program
Haiti: Bundling guidelines for new construction, bundling subsidies for buildings with multiple families, implementing homeowner-driven conditional cash plus technical assistance as the preferred housing reconstruction model
Indonesia: Building guidelines for new construction, incentivizing construction quality supervision on national home improvement program
Nepal: Building guidelines for retrofitting existing housing, making subsidies available for strengthening existing housing, implementing homeowner-driven conditional cash plus technical assistance as the preferred housing reconstruction model
Philippines: Building guidelines for new housing, unlocking capital for home strengthening
#RHATA: Amplifying voices with solutions for resilient housing
Resilient Housing Across the Americas, #RHATA, elevates the voices of mayors, city and national leaders, and other stakeholders with successful resilient housing programs in a video blog interview series.
Have a housing success story to tell? Contact us.
Global Campaigns
Climate Resilient Housing Initiative
Powered by Build Change, CRH is an initiative of UNFCCC’s Race to Resilience, engaging decision-makers and homeowners across the housing value chain to build climate resilience. CRH is a collaboration of governments, banks, philanthropists, implementers, and technologists universalizing access to resilient, climate-smart housing worldwide.
World Bank Global Program for Resilient Housing
Build Change’s partnership with the World Bank resulted in the launch of the Global Program for Resilient Housing, aimed at formalizing global development approaches to providing safe, sustainable housing in regions prone to climate stress and disasters.
Sharm El-Sheikh Adaptation Agenda
Build Change has been named a key partner of the Sharm El-Sheikh Adaptation Agenda to deliver climate-resilient housing as part of the first comprehensive global plan to enhance resilience for 4 billion people living in the most climate-vulnerable communities by 2030.
Global Forums
Build Change advocates for the cause of resilient housing in key global forums and conferences, driving investment and shaping the enabling environment for resilient housing, with recent examples including the World Economic Forum, the G7 Summit, the Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction, and UN Climate Change Conferences (COP26-28). We hold special consultative status with UN ECOSOC, making it possible for us to advance resilient housing in a variety of relevant global spaces.
Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction, 2022
UN Climate Change Conference of Parties, COP26
Build Change participates in diverse, high-level engagements across sectors to build awareness of the urgent need for resilient housing among philanthropists, humanitarians, governments, communities, technologists, and more. Our insights on topics ranging from equity, investment, engineering, resilience and systems change have advanced dialogue and action for those supporting disaster prevention, recovery, and social innovation worldwide.
Some of our favorite talks:
Autodesk University
Skoll World Forum
TED We the Future
Active Global Networks
What We Do
People
Drive and incentivize homeowner demand for resilient housing- Learn more
Policy
Elevating disaster-resilient housing on global, national, and local agendas- Learn more
Money
Expand funding and lending for construction, operations, and systems change- Learn more
Technology
Technology continues to transform the scope of what is possible- Learn more
Support resilient housing worldwide
Join us in preventing housing loss caused by disasters and climate-induced events.
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