Local and national governments are channeling significant funding into mitigating climate change in an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. These investments—on urban greening, infill development, transit, and active transportation—may cause land values and housing costs to rise, thereby displacing low-income residents. Yet, researchers continue to disagree about the extent and nature of this displacement. In this talk, I explore these questions through the lens of a decade of research on the displacement impacts of California climate change mitigation portfolio. Our mixed methods approach reveals that climate change mitigation has unintended—but small—consequences in terms of household mobility. I conclude by proposing tools to empower local communities to keep residents in place.
Knowledge Café | The Unintended Consequences of Climate Change Mitigation
