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August 18, 2024

Weekend Edition

This summer’s hottest fashion accessory? The handheld personal fan. These small electric devices are being spotted everywhere you’d expect: festivals, crowded concerts and poolside hangs – but other places you might not have thought of. Maybe you’ve watched someone cool themselves off on a plane, in the grocery aisles, or in your classroom. You can find reviews judging the best by categories, many focusing on schools – both for cash-strapped college students and the best for baby strollers. Interest in the search term “portable fans” grew 30% this summer than last, and currently, there are nearly 200 Donors Choose campaigns from teachers looking for portable fans for their students.

The latest fashion trends reflect an urgency to address rising temperatures, making everyday life more unbearable for larger communities in the U.S. This time reminds me of the “reduce, reuse, recycle” energy of the 90s – how it’s up to us to address rising temperatures. We should color-coordinate our fans to our outfits, buy sweat-wicking office clothes for our toasty commutes, and preserve electricity to avoid losing power. 

Staying cool costs money – and apparently, individuals are responsible for footing the bill. Consider how most insurance companies aren’t covering damages related to rising temperatures, like warped roof tiles or burnt crops. Also, extreme heat was projected to increase the average American’s energy bill by 9% this year alone, a cost many are struggling to cover. These costs, like everything, aren’t equally distributed – even with geographic areas experiencing the same extreme temperature. Redlining, environmental racism, and shade inequity have made lower-income neighborhoods more exposed and less equipped with the infrastructure to address hazardous heat conditions.

How can individuals be expected to bear the costs of rising temperatures when they have little means of controlling it? Yes, we’re all complicit in the destruction of the planet by our participation in a wasteful, capitalistic society (and yes, you can argue that encouraging consumerism around heat-protecting products only adds to the mess). However, we know that climate change is disproportionately affected by the major corporations that profit from its destruction and lawmakers’ decisions to enable these processes. Individuals shouldn’t be abandoned to deal with the aftermath.

What’s more damning is how the lack of social support for rising temperatures is often wielded as punishment for marginalized communities. Incarcerated communities in the South are exposed to prolonged periods of hazardous hot days. Since many of these states don’t have a mandate for air conditioning, many facilities go without. In this article, one interviewee references a day when they found the internal conditions at 138 degrees Fahrenheit. Another mentioned that she’d stay cool by laying a puddle of water on her cell floor (Inside Climate News). A lack of action is in part due to how we’ve stigmatized and discarded incarcerated people.

Unhoused communities are 200x more likely to be adversely affected by extreme heat, but cities and states have organized against their wellbeing. It’s an intentional form of hostile architecture – the practice of making public spaces uncomfortable for sitting or resting – to create spaces that aren’t shielding the sun. In a heartless video to demonstrate his “tough on homelessness” stance, California Governor Gavin Newsom was recorded removing someone’s belongings from under an underpass in Los Angeles. The area for this encampment is shaded and close to the ground, which probably provided sweet relief from the heat. July, the month when this video was taken, was California’s hottest month on record. Ever. Anti-homeless legislation is rising across the U.S., bolstered by June’s Supreme Court decision to make banning people from sleeping outside constitutional.

Punitive practices like these imply that being unhoused or incarcerated (or disabled, or poor, or Black or brown, or an elder, etc) means you must deserve to suffer from the heat.

This doesn’t mean we shouldn’t buy products to keep ourselves cool. We should – and we must – find ways to keep ourselves safe. But right now, we have a unique opportunity to set the precedent that our response to rising temperatures – like many of the issues we face in society – deserves a collective response that includes individual, institutional, and systemic accountability.

There are many ways to help your local community. Make a note of how many public, easily accessible spaces there are in your neighborhood where community members can get cool. Think beyond a coffee shop, where they may discourage guests from staying too long, or an upscale mall. Instead, focus on local institutions like libraries or museums – some cities have designated “cooling centers” in these spaces. Note the hours, cost, and availability for these spaces. Share these with people in your community – a great way is to fill out a template like this, print it out, and post it on bulletin boards at local businesses.

Also, rally to hold institutions and systems accountable. Wherever you can, demand accountability from the leaders that dictate how hazardous rising temperatures can become. Go to your local school board meetings and rally to allocate budget towards cooling classrooms. Take photos of hostile architecture and share their shortcomings with your city council. If your city relies on public transportation, consider how heat affects those spaces. This person in NYC noted the high temps in the subway using a device that you can find online for about $20. Encourage your local leaders to advocate for making these spaces cooler – whether through adding shade to bus stops or fans in the subway. 

As individuals, we’re not solely responsible for addressing rising temperatures. But we can be accountable for how our communities make it through. I’m a big fan of whatever helps us stay cool together.

• Review the symptoms and treatment for heat-related illnesses so you can take better care of yourself and others. 

• Research what local advocacy groups are doing to help marginalized communities near you stay cool.

• Learn how your local city council is discussing rising temperatures and their impact on where you live.

• Donate to a fundraiser or donation drive that provides money (for electricity bills) or products (like a gently used A/C) for community members to stay cool.

• Use this template to share resources to find refuge from the heat in your community.

• Support your local mutual aid organization by distributing water, offering time to help people find temporary housing, or donating other items to help with the heat.

• Share one way you’re taking action with a friend by forwarding this newsletter.

What can this look like in practice?

💦 Durham Community Fridges are stocking frozen waterbottles in their publicly availabile fridges for those that need a cold refreshment.

📚 LA launched a pilot testing the impact of “cooling centers” at public libraries.

🚑 As part of its work to make healthcare accessible, the nonprofit Circle the City is providing lifesaving IV hydration to unhoused people in need.

Extreme heat is killing people in prison. What’s being done about it? As advocates fight to provide relief to incarcerated people, officials are resisting many measures that could help prisoners combat the heat. The Appeal >

Rising global temperatures are already affecting the tourism industry. Tourism is crucial to many economies, but rising global temperatures are putting several holiday hotspots at risk.’ WEF >

Rez dogs are feeling the heat from climate change. A lack of infrastructure and extreme weather are putting unhoused pets on reservations in danger. Grist >

Global projections of heat exposure of older adults. A comprehensive study of the threats at risk for aged and aging populations as temperatures rise. Nature >

Trans joy persists amid India’s growing climate crisis. Koovagam Festival and other trans joy spaces are under threat as the country's sweltering temperatures continue to rise. Atmos >

We can’t just A/C our way out of the climate crisis. Few homes or other buildings have the air conditioning that can make extreme heat bearable. Teen Vogue >

How extreme heat threatens Black renters, and what policymakers can do to fix it. In 2020, Black renters had greater energy insecurity than other rents —meaning they were “unable to pay an energy bill, forwent crucial bills such as rent or groceries, or kept their homes at unsafe temperatures.” Brookings >

Heat is the next feminist wave. This article highlights the impact of rising temperatures on women across the globe, and explores how the “heat hypothesis” – how rising temperatures can foster violence – may lead to an uptick in gendered violence. New Security Beat >

Effective Facilitation

Starts Monday, September 9 | 3pm EST

In this three-week series, we will discuss facilitation techniques for equity and inclusion that can help promote these values by providing participants with practical tools and strategies to create an inclusive and equitable workplace.

Conflict Evolution

Tuesday, September 10 | 3pm EST

Go beyond conflict resolution and apply a culturally-responsive, inclusive framework to navigating challenging conversations, mediating tense scenarios, and fostering understanding with opposing viewpoints.

Miseducation of Hafiza Khalique: "What pro-Palestine students confront when their universities turn against them.”

I really appreciated this in-depth look of how NYU’s shameful response to the protests affected one student – who’s such a badass, truly. I’m always moved by the longreads on Lux. Lux >

Weathering Storms: Why People Don’t Leave Disaster-Prone Communities

Although this article focuses on a different type of disaster, it’s a relevant look at the choices individuals must make when confronting the impact of climate change. It’s a privileged take to tell people to “just move,” and here’s a few reasons not to use that language in the future. Scalawag >

Why protests work, even when not everybody likes them.

This article explores how protests galvanize – and polarize – communities and their varied political ideologies. The Forge >

We’re trying this again because last week’s link didn’t work (I thought I had linked to the newsletter’s web version once live. I hadn’t). You can actually contribute to the conversation using this link or the button below – promise!

“How have other people dealt with the aftermath of cutting out family members whose values don’t reflect their own?”

This question has been asked a lot (and I’ve appreciated every answer) but I have a slightly different take that I hope you can provide insight on. I bet others are thinking about it, too.

I’m proud to say that, after years spent arguing with my parents about their hateful, racist opinions, I decided to stop speaking to them earlier this year. I gave them an ultimatum and I’m sticking to it because they need to understand how their views affect me and the world. I hope to still change their minds.

This winter will be my first holiday where I likely won’t see them. And I’m already feeling overwhelmed by it. How have other people dealt with the aftermath of cutting out family members whose values don’t reflect their own? I’m not looking for sympathy. I’m just curious where others have gone from here.

I can’t speak to this from personal experience, but I bet many of our readers can. So, for those of you with insights, I encourage you to share them in the comments on today’s post. Be sure to review our Community Values before doing so!