$600 million climate bond helps with hurricane relief

Donald Hornstein speaks at a podium with a microphone, gesturing with one hand during a conference presentation. — (Submitted photo)

Hurricanes and tropical storms continue to affect the state of North Carolina, with residents’ homes suffering from wind and rain damage.

UNC School of Law professor Donald Hornstein set out to mitigate this with the creation of a first-of-its-kind $600 million catastrophe resilience bond, work he did partly in his role as a political appointee to the North Carolina Wind Pool, the state’s $1 billion insurer-of-last-resort at the coast. The bond’s resilience features helped the bond surpass its initial $350 million target.

The bond, aided by the research of Carolina law students, aims to help residents and insurers by providing additional funds for North Carolina homeowners to install fortified roofs. With the help of the Wind Pool’s resilience projects, over 25,000 fortified roofs have been added to homes in the Outer Banks and barrier islands in the past eight years.

A sign reading “Taking Stock: Climate Resilience and Insurance Finance” stands in the foreground as attendees walk down a hallway toward the event.

(Submitted photo)

Madison Williams ’23, a second-year law student, called the project a “strengthening your roof” program. Insurance companies invest in the fortified roofs, which are constructed with waterproofing features that help to minimize storm damage.

“If someone loses the roof to their house, they lose everything,” said Williams. “If you have a stronger roof, that means when a storm does come, you’re preventing what could be catastrophic damage. You don’t lose all your value, the stuff that can’t get replaced by money. It’s especially important with what seems like longer and more intense hurricane seasons.”

Data from the Institute for Advanced Analytics at NC State shows homes with fortified roofs experience fewer claims and less damage during hurricanes. The data is even better with non-named storms, when homes with fortified roofs reported over 60% fewer claims.

A large audience sits at round tables in a wood-paneled conference room, listening to Donald Hornstein presenting slides on climate resilience at the front of the room.

(Submitted photo)

“We help them get back on their feet quickly,” said Hornstein, the Thomas F. Taft Distinguished Professor of Law and director of the UNC Law School’s Center on Climate, Energy, Environment and Economics. “It’s like health insurers taking measures to make sure their insurers are healthy and don’t get sick in the first place.”

More than 30 law students worked on this as a pro bono project, conducting research and sorting through complicated environmental finance information. Many of the students are interested in environmental law and work closely with Carolina Law’s Environmental Law Project. The Law School awarded the project the Pro Bono Project of the Year award in spring 2025.

As a Greensboro native, Williams loves seeing how the bond helps North Carolinians.

“Working with other students was amazing, and it’s so special to know that we had something to do with something with such a large impact,” she said. “I love being able to do something to help my community and the state I grew up in.”

“This is not only helping the insurance companies in regions with major storm damage, but it’s also helping people protect their houses on the coast,” said Williams.

These results translate into lower insurance losses, faster recovery for coastal communities and a more stable market for North Carolina homeowners.

“The rest of the state is connected to the coast in the same way all of us are connected to western North Carolina and Hurricane Helene,” said Hornstein. “Anything that helps reduce losses in one part of the state eventually helps everybody in the state because we all help each other out. This helps everybody by reducing losses and insurance costs.”