Extreme heat is becoming more common. What are cities doing about it?

A boy enters a wading pool.
Jereny G. Jr. enters at the Wabun Picnic Area wading pool during a heatwave in Minneapolis on June 8, 2021.
Tim Evans for MPR News | 2021

A heatwave is coming to the Midwest next week. Highs are expected to hit near 100 degrees in Minnesota as August starts.

And we aren’t the only ones struggling with extreme heat. This has been happening all over the world. 

Last week, the U.K. had its hottest day on record. Blistering temperatures in the Northeast United States left more than 85 million Americans under excessive heat advisories on Sunday. And wildfires are raging in California right now.

This is becoming the norm as climate change creates more extreme weather and more frequent heatwaves.

MPR News host Angela Davis spoke with three experts about how cities are responding to and trying to mitigate extreme heat caused by climate change. 

Guests:

  • Emily Ziring is the sustainability manager for the City of St. Louis Park. 

  • Ladd Keith is an assistant professor of Planning and Sustainable Built Environments at the University of Arizona in Tucson. 

  • Ludovica Martella is the climate heat health program coordinator in Miami-Dade County, Florida.

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