An Uninsurable Country: What Rising Climate Risk Means for Homeowners with NRDC

From America Adapts the Climate Change Podcast Doug Parsons

In episode 249 of America Adapts, host Doug Parsons takes a deep dive into the growing climate-driven insurance crisis reshaping housing and communities across the United States. Doug first speaks with Rob Moore and Alfonso Pating of the Natural Resources Defense Council about their new reports on the nation's emerging insurability crisis—why premiums are rising, insurers are retreating from high-risk areas, and what state policies can do to reduce risk and keep homes insurable. Then filmmaker George Siegal joins the show to discuss his documentary Built to Last: Buyer Beware, which reveals how many American homes are simply not built to withstand the disasters they face. Together, these conversations connect the dots between climate risk, insurance markets, and the way we build our communities—showing how insurance is becoming one of the clearest warning signals of climate change in action.

https://www.americaadapts.org/episodes/an-uninsurable-country-what-rising-climate-risk-means-for-homeowners

Experts in this Episode:

Rob Moore - Director of the Climate Adaptation Division at NRDC

Alfonso Pating - Global financial regulations specialist with NRDC.

George Siegal - Award-winning documentary filmmaker, Director, Producer and owner of Move the World Films

Key Themes Covered in This Episode

What an "insurability crisis" is—and why it's emerging across the U.S.
Why premiums are rising, policies are disappearing, and insurers are pulling back
What makes a home insurable: risk, location, and construction
The role of states in shaping insurance markets, building codes, and land use
How FAIR Plans work and why they're rapidly expanding
Whether FAIR Plans can become tools for resilience, not just backstops
How insurance markets are acting as a signal of climate risk
Why many homes are not built to withstand today's disasters
The tension between affordability and resilient construction
What this all means for the future of housing and adaptation

For Educators & Students

How insurance markets are responding to climate risk
The role of states in shaping insurance, building codes, and land use
The connection between housing, affordability, and resilience
Insurance as an economic signal of climate change
Professors are welcome to assign this episode or excerpts in syllabi

Who Should Listen to This Episode

Climate adaptation and resilience professionals
State and local officials focused on housing, risk, and planning
Urban planners and developers working in high-risk areas
Insurance and finance professionals tracking climate risk
Climate communicators and educators explaining these shifts

Transcript of Rob Moore and Alfonso Pating interview avaible here.

Transcript of George Siegal interview available here.

This episode was generously sponsored by the Natural Resources Defense Council

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Links in this episode:

An Uninsurable Country https://www.nrdc.org/resources/uninsurable-country

https://www.nrdc.org/resources/insurance-fair-future

https://builttolastmovie.com/

Doug Parsons and Speaking Opportunities: If you are interested in having Doug speak at corporate and conference events, sharing his unique, expert perspective on adaptation in an entertaining and informative way, more information can be found here!

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