More cities and towns in Indiana are working to make their communities sustainable and resilient to extreme weather than three years ago, according to a survey led by Indiana University researchers.
The results, gathered between January and June of this year, arrive as local governments contend with federal funding cuts and state tax changes that threaten to undermine local sustainability and resilience projects.
More than 150 local government representatives participated in the 2025 survey, a follow-up to a 2022 survey focused on identifying local barriers to pursuing sustainability initiatives. Through actions such as participating in regional collaborations, applying for grants, and updating local ordinances, survey respondents report new measures they are taking to protect Hoosiers from climate impacts, such as severe storms and flooding.
“One of the significant changes from three years ago is how much increased collaboration is happening across cities and between cities and other organizations,” said Aaron Deslatte, an associate professor at the IU O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs who led the survey. “We’re also seeing a lot more implementation of strategies focused on the built environment, like roads and stormwater infrastructure, to better prepare for environmental changes.”
While lack of staff and funding remain top barriers for communities to do more, roughly half of respondents reported budgeting and writing grants for sustainability, an increase of about 25% from three years ago.
Other key findings from the survey include:
- 43% of cities and towns report participating in regional collaborations focused on sustainability (+14% from 2022)
- 65% of respondents say their local government has adopted an ordinance preventing new construction in a 100- and/or 500-year floodplain (+22%)
- 18% of respondents report having participated in a greenhouse gas inventory (+10%)
Growing participation in sustainability initiatives can likely be attributed in part to funding incentives enacted by the Biden administration, which made billions of dollars available to local governments for sustainability and resilience initiatives through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021 and the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, Deslatte said.
This year, the Trump administration has taken aggressive action to pause or terminate funding allocated through these laws. In Indiana, that’s jeopardized hundreds of millions of dollars awarded to communities to address the health impacts and risks of extreme weather and climate change.
“A lot of those programs are on hold now,” Deslatte said. “It’s going to be a hard road in the next few years adjusting to the sudden pause in federal funding.”
Property tax cuts adopted by the Indiana state legislature in 2025 pose another funding challenge for local governments, with many communities scrambling to adapt to projected budget shortfalls beginning in 2026. Sustainability programs could be a target for cuts or elimination as a result. In South Bend, for example, the city is proposing a 70% cut to its sustainability office.
Despite these challenges, Deslatte remains cautiously optimistic communities will continue to find ways to collaborate and achieve their sustainability goals.
“Cities that coordinate more through regional organizations or participate in resilience cohorts are seeing substantive changes,” he said. “Collaboration drives sustainable development policies and project implementation, and that’s the best path to bridge staff and funding limitations.
“I expect that the funding changes we’re seeing now will force cities to be more creative and perhaps slow down. In the long-term, however, cities will adapt because really they don’t have any other choice.”
About the Environmental Resilience Institute
Indiana University’s Environmental Resilience Institute connects a broad coalition of government, business, nonprofit, and community leaders to help Indiana and the Midwest better prepare for the challenges of environmental change. Together, we integrate research, education, and community to create environmental resilience and climate solutions—building a more sustainable, equitable, and prosperous future. Learn more at eri.iu.edu.
