With the objective of increasing the capacity of the coastal region of Cali-Baja to survive and thrive in the face of the shocks and stresses caused by the climate changeand other natural, economic and social pressures, San Diego Foundation launched the Binational Resilience Initiative (BRI), which will provide US$750,000 in funding for projects that help build resilience.
The funds will be awarded to nonprofit organizations in the following areas Mexico o United States who are working for:
- Expand binational climate collaboration
- Promoting coastal resilience through an integrated regional approach
- Provide capacity building support to organizations working to increase the coastal resilience of our communities.
The BRI guidelines 2023 note that funding requests can range from $25,000 to $50,000 per year for each partner organization working together on a collaborative project. Total funding for a collaborative project cannot exceed $100,000.
Fundación San Diego explains that BRI supports high impact projects and programs that provide multiple benefits and strengthen the capacity to anticipate, mitigate and adapt to the changing climate.
"Our region needs innovative cross-sectoral projects and collaborations to build our binational climate resilience," the organization states.
The San Diego Foundation, International Community Foundation, Resilient Cities Catalyst and San Diego Regional Climate Collaborative are collaborating on this project to expand the impact of the BRI in the region.
"Through a process guided by members of our community, BRI recognizes the environmental, economic and cultural interdependence among coastal communities in the Cali-Baja region, from Oceanside in the U.S. to Ensenada/San Quintin in Mexico," the document explains.
He adds that through this initiative, they seek to promote projects and programs that help increase the resilience of Cali-Baja under a binational approach through the following strategies:
- Expand the climate change efforts of our BRI project partners to develop binational resources, knowledge and tools to promote coastal resilience.
- Support new and existing cross-border collaborative projects and programs that allow us to connect, adapt, innovate and prosper together.
- Support those working to improve, restore and conserve our shared ecosystems.
- Support the institutional capacity of organizations working to improve our binational coastal resilience.
The Cali-Baja region covers the entire Cali-Baja metropolitan area. San DiegoThe Pacific coastal communities of northern Baja California, Mexico, among others, are also affected. Tijuana y Ensenada/San Quintín.
The Cali-Baja region has a wide variety of landscapes ranging from mountain ranges, desert plateaus, wetlands, coastal watersheds and coastline.
The San Diego Foundation states that, despite the political boundaries along the U.S.-Mexico border, communities in the San Diego region are still very much in need of assistance. Cali-Baja are uniquely connected due to an environmental, economic, and cultural interdependence between San Diego and the communities of northern Baja California.
With these characteristics, he adds that this complex and interconnected region requires specific cross-sectoral projects and collaborations to build resilience in a binational manner, as due to the dissection of the region by the international border, the use of shared coastal, freshwater and terrestrial resources have been developed under divergent approaches, priorities and objectives.
Stresses that the Binational Resilience Initiative seeks to support projects that help build resilience in the region Cali-Baja and develop a network of binational organizations working to promote resilience and enable a diversity of funding mechanisms that generate innovative binational approaches and thriving communities.
Source: San Diego Foundation
