This panel addresses the potential and perils of stakeholder engagement in sustainability policy and planning at local and state levels in three diverse regions of the United States threatened by climate change: Ventura County, CA; flood-prone communities in Colorado, and the Rockaway peninsula, in Queens, New York. Although the research focuses on three domestic cases, the findings regarding disparities in civic engagement, policy learning, and the prioritization of sustainability outcomes have implications for communities worldwide wrestling with long-term sustainable change.