Innovations in Buyouts Workshops

Practitioners, community members, researchers, and advocates have long observed challenges with federally-financed home buyout programs. At the same time, demand for buyouts is growing in many areas. Current programs and funding sources are not meeting communities’ and individuals’ needs for relocation support.

The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) in partnership with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), CH Consulting, The Nature Conservancy (TNC), and the Climigration Network convened two workshop series—one with buyout practitioners and program managers, and one with buyout participants and community leaders—to discuss shared challenges and identify practical recommendations for making buyouts faster, easier, and fairer.

Buyout Program Manager & Practitioner Workshops

From December 2021-June 2022, NRDC, FEMA staff, and CH Consulting held six workshops with over 30 buyout professionals from across the country, including current and former federal, state, and local employees, and a few individuals from academic and private organizations with extensive expertise in buyout processes. 

Participants’ big takeaway: Buyouts should be designed as true programs, not projects. This requires institutional support at the state, regional, and/or local scale. Participants identified five key shifts to move towards buyout "programs, not projects”:

  1. Plan for buyouts by incorporating them into existing planning processes

  2. Prepare for buyouts by front-loading work in a pre-disaster context

  3. Design for equity from the very beginning to meet communities’ needs

  4. Diversify funding sources to be faster and more flexible

  5. Build multi-disciplinary teams and partnerships

Find the white paper “ Innovating to Make Home Buyouts Faster, Easier, and Fairer (2022)” and complementary federal policy recommendations here.

Buyout Participants & Community Leader Workshops

Workshops were designed carefully to acknowledge trauma and avoid re-traumatizing participants. We worked with skilled facilitators, focused on story-sharing and building relationships, made sure everyone participated in their preferred language, paid everyone for their participation, and made sure anyone was able to pause or leave the discussions at any time, for any reason.

From July-October 2022, 12 individuals with first-hand experience of a government-financed buyout of their home (both voluntary and mandatory) came together for three virtual conversations with partners from NRDC, TNC, and the Climigration Network. 

Participants shared very different experiences with buyout programs – including why they were in a buyout program, how their families' needs were (or were not) met, what resources they could access, and how they felt during and after. Together, they diagnosed and proposed treatments for common challenges. Their recommendations include:

  1. Buyout recipients need a person they can call who is reliable, trustworthy, knowledgeable, and easily accessible.

  2. Buyouts should cover all expenses, and the funding should be used wisely.

  3. Accessible, informative, and proactive communication about buyout programs is essential.

  4. Buyout programs should be designed around fairness.

  5. Prevent the need for buyouts by building homes in safe locations.

Find the report “Improving Home Buyouts - Lessons Learned from Experience (2023)” in English and Spanish here.

Next Steps

Building from these workshops, project partners will be:

(1) Sharing the outcomes of this work:

    • The Climigration Network hosted an event on March 1, 2023, to share the recommendations developed in this project, and engage in a panel discussion with buyout practitioners, recipients, and project partners. View the event recording in English here, in Spanish here. 

    • Project partners hosted a highly-attended session at the Columbia University “At What Point Managed Retreat?” Conference in June 2023 - watch the session recording here!

    • Hear directly from project partners and workshop participants about their experiences and insights on the Aug 14, 2023, episode of the America Adapts Podcast - listen here!

(2) Acting on the recommendations developed in the workshops, including:

    • Holding follow-up dialogues with both community members and practitioners

    • Exploring peer networks for practitioners and participants

    • Conducting state-specific outreach and collaboration with other groups also working to improve home buyouts

Questions? Interested in learning more?
Please reach out to the Climigration Network at climigration@cbi.org or NRDC at https://www.nrdc.org/contact-us

Project Partners

  • Anna Weber and Rob Moore at the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC): Lead convener and host of both workshops

  • Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA): FEMA Staff provided background on grant funding for acquisitions (buyouts) and current statutory / regulatory framework

  • Carri Hulet at CH Consulting: Lead designer and facilitator of buyout program manager workshop, Co-designer and facilitator of buyout recipient workshop

  • Shameika Hanson at The Nature Conservancy (TNC): Co-designer and facilitator of buyout recipient workshop

  • Climigration Network: Co-designer of buyout recipient workshop, Host of March 1st event to share findings

  • Tecolotl: Spanish-English interpretation and translation services

  • Funders: This project was made possible with support from the Hewlett Packard Enterprise Foundation. Through the Climigration Network, the JPB Foundation provided funding to compensate buyout recipients for their time, participation, and wisdom.