“The Climate Divide” is back!
By hola | Published | No Comments
After many months of interviews, research and recording, we are excited to announce the launch of season 2 of Hola Cultura’s podcast “The Climate Divide.”
“The Climate Divide” began with the goal of delving into the Urban Heat Island Effect and how on a blistering summer day in D.C., living in or near an area with a lot of tree cover can make a huge difference to how one bears the heat. The heat islands phenomena are a striking example of how not all communities experience our climate in the same way. In the District and many other cities, there is a stark disparity of tree cover, with wealthier neighborhoods tending to have more trees than low-income neighborhoods.
Season 1 focused on how that “tree inequity,” so to speak, came into being as well as the health repercussions of exposure to extreme heat and the different solutions in place to reduce the heat island effect. In season 2, we’ll expand the conversation to discuss new scientific research that draws a clear line linking the locations of a variety of today’s worst environmental hazards to places that have seen decades of discriminatory development practices and government policies, such as redlining.
Many organizations, journals and academic institutions are studying the correlation between heat islands, flooding, poor air quality and other environmental problems in frontline communities that saw historic redlining based on the race and ethnicity of their residents. In D.C.’s case, many historically black neighborhoods were given lower grades on maps made by the Federal Housing Administration, which influenced patterns of disinvestment in many neighborhoods in Wards 5, 7 and 8, while racially restrictive covenants barred black residents from moving to lush neighborhoods in upper Northwest.
Since the conclusion of the first season, we’ve continued to build on this environmental justice reporting with an article (co-published with the Washington City Paper) explaining how these same patterns of economic disenfranchisement also play a role in who’s most impacted by flooding problems today. Our research continues with the support of the Pulitzer Center and Spotlight DC.
In addition to building on the flooding reporting we’ve already brought you this year, season 2 will provide a snapshot of how D.C. is facing climate change and prioritizing environmental justice. And how and why climate change is disproportionately affecting citizens whose age, health, income – or even neighborhood location – makes it much harder to deal with something like a heat wave or a flood.
One thing we hope listeners will come away with this season is the importance of community power. Many of the sustainability initiatives and developments we are seeing today are the result of decades of residents advocating and voicing their concerns.
“The Climate Divide” season two started Nov. 9 with new episodes weekly. Find it here at Hola Cultura or wherever you get your podcasts. If you think this program and topic need more attention, please follow us and rate and review the podcast so more people can find it.
– Marcelo Jauregui-Volpe
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