Climate, Cities and Behavior Project

Project Purpose

The Garrison Institute’s Climate Cities and Behavior (CCB) program is generating a network to provide affordable, quickly implementable climate solutions based on behavioral shifts. CCB scans and filters the best new behavior change research coming out of key institutions, identifies ways of translating it into practical applications, and disseminates them through the network. For example, when low-cost GPS transponders are placed on buses so that residents can easily track the arrival time of a bus with an iPhone app, bus ridership increases. Since such measures cost little, spread rapidly and result in persistent benefits when properly designed, we are seeing a rising interest in thirst for behavior change strategies. 

The CCB program is building a network of institutions and city leaders to generate city-level behavior-based climate solutions, which are distributed to a wide range of cities through the CCB network, and implemented at high speed and low cost. The network serves to inform mayors, city planning directors, urban sustainability directors, city commissioners, directors of economic development programs and others of best practices for climate impacts through behavior change.

We provide information to the network via monthly email blasts, a web library of relevant resources, in addition to an annual CCB symposium and regional working groups. We also spread the word through key groups such as ICLEI, the Urban Land Institute, the Urban Sustainability Directors Network, the C-40 and the US Green Building Council. To receive email updates, click here, or for more information on CCB, contact  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

Gatherings

The first annual CCB symposium was held at the Garrison Institute April 27-29th. It will convene invited mayors, city planners, transportation directors and urban sustainability leaders from cities around the US, connecting them with emerging behavioral approaches, and exploring the role of cognitive biases in framing effecting city regulations, ranging from appliance standards to zoning rules. Participants will discuss common obstacles, and share best practices. The CCB network will remain active through regional working groups and online exchanges and resources.