Resilience & Long Horizons: A SidePorch Convening at LA Climate Week 2026
Overview
Climate resilience is not a crisis response posture. It is an operating condition. And the decisions that matter most for resilience are the ones that play out over decades: what infrastructure gets built and for whom, how capital is structured for commitments that outlast budget cycles, what happens to people and institutions when the emergency never ends, and why the signals leaders rely on have so little to do with what communities actually experience.
SidePorch is hosting a full-day executive convening during LA Climate Week 2026 in Santa Monica at Snap HQ with their state-of-the-art venue with high quality A/V and production.
The day brings together leaders from infrastructure, capital markets, performance science, public policy, insurance, philanthropy, and community organizing to work across both dimensions of the title: what resilience actually requires when the horizon is not months but generations, and what long-horizon thinking demands when many of the systems we inherit are designed for the past, not the future.
Designed for senior leaders, funders, policymakers, infrastructure developers, and practitioners navigating long-horizon complexity across climate, health, education, and economic resilience.
Attendance is limited to approximately 300.
The Schedule for the Day
Doors Open at 9:30AM
10:00 | Welcome
Conversation 1: Human Performance in the Long Emergency
Ben Potvin - Liminal Collective, ex-Cirque du Soleil
Conversation 2: Operating at Scale with Community at the Center
Transatlantic Bridge
Conversation 3: Risk and Finance
11:30 to 12:30 | Concurrent Breakout and Panel Sessions
Breakout 1: Performance Lab
Ben Potvin - Liminal Collective, ex-Cirque du Soleil
Breakout 2: Investing Across the Ecosystem
Matt Gonser - County of Los Angeles Climate Resilience Officer
Moderated by Alexander Kapur - SidePorch
Breakout 3: From Silos to Systems
Moderated by Lala Faiz and Ellah Ronen - SidePorch
12:30 to 1:15 | Lunch
1:20 | Afternoon Welcome Back
Innovating at the Pace of the Problem
Decision Hub
Rob Lempert - RAND
Thomas Aujero Small - Culver City Forward, ex-Culver City Mayor
3:00 | Closing Synthesis
3:15 to 4:45 | Reception and Happy Hour
Food and Drink
Breakfast is available in the courtyard starting at 9:30 AM.
Lunch is informal from about 12:30 to 1:15 PM.
The reception runs 3:15 to 4:45 PM with drinks and light food.
Parking and Transportation
Parking validations provided onsite.
31st Street Entrance: Pull a ticket, turn left, then slight right at the stop sign. Park in any open space.
Centinela Ave Entrance: Pull a ticket, go straight past Bank of America, building on your left. Park in any open space.
Rideshare and drop-offs: 15-minute grace period in front of the building.
Metro: Expo/Bundy stop on the Metro E Line is approximately a 1-mile walk or micro-transit trip away.
Check-in
To streamline the process, please have the Luma app (Luma: Delightful Events) downloaded with your QR code readily available. This QR code will also be in the confirmation email you received upon registration. If you are unable to locate it, please provide the registration team your first and last name.
Dress Code
We encourage attire appropriate to your comfort level so you can fully engage in the day's conversations and activities. Please note that photography and filming will take place throughout the event.
Event Recording and Documentation
This event may be recorded. By attending, you consent to be photographed, filmed, and/or otherwise recorded, and to any use by SidePorch of your likeness, voice, and name in any and all media including social media. Breakout discussions will have notetakers, and summaries will be shared after the event. If you do not want your name or photo used, please reach out to Andy Riemer ([email protected]).
If you have any questions, please reach out to [email protected]. We look forward to seeing you there.