Recognizing momentum in the resilience work across the region, the East Central Florida Regional Planning Council adopted a resolution in 2018, recommitting to regionalism and supporting a program to convene stakeholders to develop a structure and framework for a united resilience effort. Committees were formed and experts convened. ​

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Three pillars were identified under the resilience umbrella; (people) Health + Equity, (places) Build Infrastructure + Natural Environment, and (prosperity) Economic Resilience. Woven throughout each pillar is a reduction of risks, vulnerabilities and the carbon footprint, and an increase in sustainability goals region-wide. Resilience to any disaster rests on the premise that all aspects of a community- its places, people, and prosperity- are strong. This framework acts as the mechanism to execute our vision: To ensure a thriving and resilient future through comprehensive regional collaboration.

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With this resilience framework in mind, the steering committee drafted a Memorandum of Understanding that would formalize partnership in the Collaborative throughout local governments and agencies in the 8 county and 78 city region. In May of 2019, the East Central Florida Regional Resilience Collaborative (ECFR2C) was formally established by unanimous vote of the East Central Florida Regional Planning Council. The R2C has defined resilience as the ability to bounce forward (not back) in the face of short-term shocks like hurricanes or infrastructure failures and long-term stressors like affordable housing, aging infrastructure, and climate change. These shocks and stressors  need to be approached holistically, striving for transformative change to address the drivers of these vulnerabilities and those that exacerbate them.

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Currently, the R2C is composed of a Volunteer Council Sub-Committee, a Steering Committee, and five supporting technical advisory committees (TACs). Developed to address and focus discussions on specific regional concerns and potential opportunities, these seven committees support R2C collective efforts and overall vision towards achieving a more resilient east central Florida community. Each TAC - Regional Risk and Vulnerability TAC; Regional Greenhouse Gas Inventory TAC; Infrastructure [Green, Grey, and Blue] TAC; Heat and Health TAC; and Biodiversity TAC— embraces at least one pillar (people, places, and prosperity) into their mission’s work; with the understanding that people, places, and prosperity are interconnected and interdependent components of a community’s system.