Extreme Heat
Study: Urban Trees Lose Cooling Benefits in Extreme Heat
A robust tree canopy can help reduce the urban heat island effect and lower air temperatures, but the impact is reduced as temperatures rise.
Protecting Vulnerable Older Adults From Extreme Heat
People over 65 are at particular risk during heat waves and other climate disasters.
NYC Lawmaker Proposes Mandatory Cooling Law
Despite hundreds of heat-related deaths every year, the city has no regulations on cooling in residential units.
Heat-Related ER Visits Soar in Florida
The state has the most heat-related hospital visits in the nation, but efforts to create protections for outdoor workers and other vulnerable residents have been stymied by state legislators.
Beating Extreme Heat Through Community Efforts
U.S. cities don't provide residents with enough protection against heat, the deadliest weather-related killer in the world. In New York City, one organization came together to distribute ACs to neighbors in need.
Wildfires Explode Across the West
Multiple massive fires are burning across the Western United States and Canada, prompting governments to explore new mitigation and response strategies.
Essential Strategies for Combating Extreme Heat
Cities can protect residents from extreme heat by enhancing natural and built infrastructure, establishing heat response strategies, and implementing national policies for worker safety and disaster response.
Addressing the Perils of Extreme Heat
With this year bringing on more record heat waves, governments at the local and federal levels are elevating extreme heat management as an urgent priority.
Tucson Keeps Buses Fare-Free
The city is doubling down on its efforts to boost bus ridership as part of its climate action plan.
State AGs Call for FEMA to Classify Extreme Heat, Smoke as ‘Major Disasters’
State and local officials say explicitly naming heat and wildfire smoke would give local agencies more certainty in developing their mitigation strategies.
Thousands of NYC Shelter Residents Lack Air Conditioning
Even in the depths of extreme heat, many shelters prohibit residents from installing AC units.
Deadly Contact Burns Rising in the Southwest
As heat waves become more frequent and severe, hospitals are seeing more patients admitted with serious, sometimes life-threatening burns from asphalt and other outdoor surfaces.
Chicago Tenants’ Union Distributes AC Units to Low-Income Renters
The group wants to draw attention to the dangers of extreme heat and encourage tenants to organize to demand improved conditions.
Using AI to Model Climate Impacts
A German research team used AI to understand how thermal stress will impact urban infrastructure down to the street level.
Federal and State Responses to Extreme Heat
Governments are mobilizing resources to address the impacts of longer and more intense heat waves on public health and infrastructure.
Phoenix Nonprofit Offers Medical Services to Unhoused Residents
The mobile medical units are administering IV fluids and treating heat-related illnesses as extreme heat blankets the Southwest.
Portland Train Speed Limited by Extreme Heat
When temperatures hit 100 degrees, the city’s two train systems face challenges that force them to slow their speeds or stop operations altogether.
LA Begins Adding New Bus Shelters
The program, years in the works, pledges to add 3,000 new bus shelters and 450 shade structures to protect riders from extreme heat and weather.
California Faces Intense Heat Wave, Power Shutoffs
The state is bracing for a heat dome that will bring temperatures into the 120s and little nighttime relief.
The Heat Is On: Rising Temperatures Strain Urban Infrastructure
This summer is predicted to be one of the hottest on record, and heat waves will likely put physical and social infrastructure to the test.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS)
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
City of Cambridge
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
