The Story
In 2020, Dick Prouty was busy with ideas on how to bring attention to climate change impacts on Cape Ann. He set out to fund an innovative Harvard Graduate School of Design (HGSD) scenario planning study that would illustrate how a Category 3 hurricane would impact Cape Ann communities (Phase 1). Prouty ended up raising $60K from generous donors. The City of Gloucester’s Mayor at that time, Sefatia Romeo-Theken, also committed $50K.
The project grew to include three phases spanning 2020 to 2025. The Phase 2 study on Cape Ann ecological restoration was supported by MA Senator Bruce Tarr and Representative Ann-Margaret Ferrante who secured $200K in state funding. Phase 3, due out in late 2025, was funded with a Congressionally-directed funding request through Senator Ed Markey’s office. It’s administered by NOAA. Phases 1-3 have come to be known as “The Harvard Study.”
TownGreen’s Role
TownGreen plays an important role in The Harvard Study, participating in monthly steering committee meetings with its partners, the Town of Manchester-by-the-Sea and the Cape Ann Climate Coalition.
The Harvard Study was the original inspiration for TownGreen’s Planning for Reality Series webinars, climate impact field trips, and in-person workshops.
On YouTube:
Review The Harvard Study
Harvard Graduate School of Design’s Office for Urbanization
A multiyear study focused on Cape Ann led by Professor Charles Waldheim called The Future of the American City: The Case of Cape Ann in three phases:
Phase 1: Compound Vulnerabilities: The Case for Cape Ann and Climate Change
This study evaluates the impacts on Cape Ann from a Category 3 hurricane on 27 iconic locations. Other research areas include near-future adaptation, net zero housing, and waste recovery.
Phase 2: Regenerative Landscapes: Beyond Conservation to Adaptation
This phase investigates the current and potential future conditions of Cape Ann’s valuable landscapes comprising ecosystems and infrastructures, from saltmarshes and eelgrass beds to temperate forests and cultivated agricultural lands, among many others. They support the biodiversity, economic vitality, and unique character of Cape Ann. Regenerative Landscapes proposes a series of initiatives that pursue ecological restoration and climate adaptation to achieve a balance between ecosystem resilience and human activity
Phase 3: Developing Local Capacity for Extreme Weather Events Across Governance, Finance, Community Engagement, and Infrastructure (Release in 2025)
This study will look at governance, engagement, finance, and infrastructure. The study will include an analysis of existing conditions, issues arising, and recommendations for change. The findings of this study will contribute to the capacity of Cape Ann’s four municipalities to anticipate, prepare for, manage, and rebuild from a variety of scenarios for rising sea levels and future extreme weather events in the Gulf of Maine.
LONG BEACH IS…? LONG BEACH COULD BE…?
Place-Based Scenarios for a Cultural Landscape in a Changing Climate
Climate change is local.
Your donation to TownGreen will support Cape Ann climate action and education
