35 'resilient cities' worldwide to join $100M Rockefeller Foundation initiative

Thirty-five cities from Accra, Ghana, to Wellington, New Zealand, are being recognized by the New York-based Rockefeller Foundation for their ideas on physical, social and economic resilience.

The foundation announced the latest winners of its 100 Resilient Cities contest in conjunction with a summit Wednesday in Singapore. The foundation has committed $100 million to the effort, with the idea that the 100 eventual winners will become models for other cities.

Chosen from nearly 350 applications spanning over 90 countries, this year's winners are as far north as Montreal and as far south as Sydney. The United States is most represented, with six cities in the continental U.S. and one in Puerto Rico, but there also are multiple selections in China and India.

The foundation will finance a "chief resilience officer" position for each city to address challenges that could range from increasing threats of flooding to growing strains on health systems. The cities also will get technical help planning and implementing their strategies.

"Cities are learning that by building resilience, not only will they be better prepared for the bad times, but also life is better in the good times, especially for the poor and vulnerable," Rockefeller Foundation President Judith Rodin said in a statement.

About 30 other cities were named last year, and more applications will be taken next year.