🧬 Resilience Governance Structures

• San Francisco positioned its Resilience Office inside the Capital Planning Office so resilience considerations shape long-term infrastructure investment and major capital decisions.
• Montevideo created an Integrated Risk Governance Framework that links planning, communication and emergency management across departments and provides continuity through political cycles.
• Cape Town formed a Directorate for Future Planning and Resilience that brings climate action, investment planning, risk management, policy and strategy coordination and business continuity into one strategic function.
• Across Penang State, resilience has been institutionalised through CRO appointments at both state and local levels, creating a coordinated, multi-tiered governance structure for delivery.
• At a metropolitan scale, Sydney aligns resilience outcomes across several councils through a cross-portfolio governance mechanism, while Ramallah and Mexico City have established resilience councils and cross-government committees that embed responsibilities in permanent institutions.

These approaches show how formal mandates, decision pathways and coordination mechanisms help cities align actions across departments and maintain accountability as resilience work expands.

Clear governance structures bring consistency, shared ownership and long-term direction to resilience practice. They help cities avoid fragmented action and ensure that planning, infrastructure, operations and community-facing services work toward the same priorities. By formalising roles and decision processes, cities are better prepared to manage shocks, navigate institutional turnover and deliver coherent action at scale.