Sweltering Cities is a new project with big plans. We have a vision for cooler, more equitable and sustainable cities with planning and policy that puts people at the centre. Sweltering Cities was founded at the beginning of 2020.
2020 tied as the hottest year on record around the world. Australia broke temperature records from January to November. In Penrith on January 4th 2020 it was 48.9 degrees celsius – the hottest recorded temperature on earth that day. The summer of 2019-20 in Australia was the second hottest on record and 1.88 degrees celsius above average; the hottest summer was the one before. Sweltering Cities is collaborating with organisations and working with communities across NSW, Victoria and Queensland. We’re working in Western Sydney with some of the hottest urban communities in Australia. Western Sydney is an urban heat island that can be more than 10 degrees warmer than the city’s eastern suburbs.
Vision: Our cities are more sustainable, equitale and liveable. We kicked off the summer with a community survey that brought together almost 700 voices from across Western Sydney, North West Sydney and South West Sydney to tell the story of how heat is affecting the people who live in the hottest parts of our cities. In Melbourne, 110 people from over 50 postcodes shared their experiences of the summer heat. We’re getting ready to launch strategic campaigns across Australia in the coming months.