Identifying Needs and Opportunities for a Modern All-of-Government Approach to Coastal Resilience

American coasts are rich in natural and cultural resources and act as economic engines for the nation. Yet a rapidly shifting climate has reduced community capacity to predict and adapt to coastal hazards. For the coastal communities to build their resilience to the hazards they face, they need timely access to actionable information that is relevant to their specific challenges and decisions. Scientifically and technologically robust data, tools, training, guidance, and comparable resilience-oriented products and services are valuable only if target audiences are able to access and apply them. Thus, the ways in which Federal agencies design, produce, deliver, and evaluate the efficacy of our resilience products are equally important as the content. To identify best practices for an all-of-government approach to coastal resilience, the Subcommittee on Ocean Science and Technology, a subsidiary body of the National Science and Technology Council, hosted a federal-only exploratory workshop to initiate a conversation and collaboratively strategize improvements in coastal governance. During the event, over 400 workshop participants identified existing strengths and gaps in their agencies production and delivery of products for coastal communities as well as potential areas for collaboration. Breakout group discussions resulting in opportunity and recommendations for future coordination across the Federal government were synthesized into a white paper which identified short and long-term recommendations for action. Here, we present the results of this workshop and content of the resulting white paper, which emphasizes improved Federal coordination, better equity, diversity, and inclusion, and enhanced integration of social science into coastal resilience governance.