With the mentorship and support of long-time Partners colleague William K. Reilly, Partners has developed the City Resilient Awards Program to embody a new civic movement: Prosperous, Sustainable, and Fair.

The awards program will replace Partners' once-a-decade recognition of America's Most Livable Community, last given in 2004. Partners defines resilience to encompass a diverse range of elements, including a strong economy with equal opportunity, high quality public education, affordable health services, accessible public transportation, and the capacity to persevere through environmental, economic, and social hardships. Furthermore, a resilient city is an inclusive one: all residents should be involved in the process of creating a more prosperous city, giving voice to the full range of ideas and perspectives of the population.

In the City Resilient program prospectus, Partners outlines this vision:

Cities that embrace innovation, expand partnerships, develop new niches in business, and reevaluate priorities inevitably become more adaptive, smart, and savvy. In these communities, all residents are viewed as assets for the growth and development of the whole. Every segment of the community – individuals, businesses, and local government - takes on leadership roles. A truly resilient community depends on many factors, but every community can perpetuate and improve its quality of life with the economic, social, and environmental amenities it currently possesses.

Partners for Livable Communities sees City Resilient as a unifying movement that will reduce crime and improve safety, provide health-enhancing opportunities for the people who live there, and improve the aesthetics of the community. By showcasing the values that create successful, resilient cities, Partners will inspire other cities to become more resilient themselves and provide them with best practices and models to achieve these goals. It is a movement of the present and of the future that is creating better communities for Americans of all ages, races, genders, incomes, and beliefs.

The prospectus also lays out the structure of the City Resilient program, including the indicators that will be used to measure resilience.

Partners for Livable Communities sees City Resilient as a unifying movement that will reduce crime and improve safety, provide health-enhancing opportunities for the people who live there, and improve the aesthetics of the community. By showcasing the values that create successful, resilient cities, Partners will inspire other cities to become more resilient themselves and provide them with best practices and models to achieve these goals. It is a movement of the present and of the future that is creating better communities for Americans of all ages, races, genders, incomes, and beliefs. [p.5]