Building Community Resilience Through CALM

The Takeaway: State partners in Wisconsin joined to create the Collaborative Action for Lake Michigan (CALM) Coastal Resilience network to build resilience and mitigate hazards by increasing coordination among local, regional, and state agencies.

After a series of flood events, lake level fluctuation, and winter storms impacted the area, Wisconsin state partners came together to share resources, lessons learned, and best practices in order to increase coastal resilience and coordination across the state. The Wisconsin Coastal Management Program worked with Wisconsin Sea Grant and Wisconsin’s State Cartographer’s Office to establish a community of practice called the Collaborative Action for Lake Michigan (CALM) Coastal Resilience network. The network’s main objective is to expand coordination efforts among agencies, organizations, and local governments by sharing resources, promoting products and tools, and building on the work of the Wisconsin Coastal Management Data Infrastructure project to share coastal data.

The network has already reduced confusion in the roles of local, regional, and state entities in coastal planning and preparedness. Rather than duplicating efforts, these agencies and organizations can make their resources go further by better coordinating actions. The network has also amplified the flow of information, resources, and opportunities for collaboration throughout the Lake Michigan region, which includes building a list of funding sources to share among partners to ensure the best projects are paired with the right resources.

The network has built community capacity by sharing decision-support tools, resources, data, and case studies. It has also strengthened knowledge sharing among members, which has helped to establish regional cohesion of communities, agencies, and organizations that are better prepared to leverage available financial resources to enhance coastal plans, policies, and resilience projects.

Through semiannual meetings, members developed stronger cross-agency relationships and were therefore comfortable sharing their challenges and seeking assistance, leading to improved hazard mitigation plans, enhanced mapping capabilities, and strengthened coordination. On multiple occasions, the network replaced its annual meeting with field trips to Racine, Port Washington, and Ozaukee County for more hands-on sharing. Participants explored Samuel Myers Park, Upper Lake Park, and Virmond Park. At each location, they had the opportunity to engage with project experts and ask questions about wetland restoration, bluff stability, invasive species, and the impacts of groundwater.

The effort has been so successful that all key partners have agreed to continue this work beyond the initial funding phase. The state cartographer’s office even plans to use the network to prepare for the upcoming collection of hydrography data by the U.S. Geological Survey and Department of Natural Resources. The next time a flood or winter storm strikes, partners are better prepared to respond. (2025)

Partners: Wisconsin Coastal Management Program, Wisconsin Sea Grant, Wisconsin State Cartographer’s Office, Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission, Bay-Lake Regional Planning Commission