>>> THIS WEEK'S RECORD BREAKING TEMPERATURES WERE A REMINDER THAT EVEN A CITY KNOWN FOR ITS PUNISHING WINTERS CAN STILL BE BLISTERINGLY HOT AND EVEN DEADLY AS WE SAW DURING THE HEATWAVE OF 1995 THAT KILLED MORE THAN 700 CHICAGOANS.

SINCE THEN THE CITY INCREASED ITS EFFORTS TO KEEP PEOPLE COOL IN DANGEROUS HEAT.

NOW CHICAGO IS ONE OF 18 CITIES PARTICIPATING IN THE 2023 HEAT WATCH PROGRAM WITH THE NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION IN WHICH COMMUNITY VOLUNTEERS COLLECT TEMPERATURE AND HUMIDITY DATA TO ANALYZE FOR UNDERLYING REASONS AND POTENTIAL MITIGATION EFFORTS.

HERE WITH MORE ON THE IMPACT OF EXTREME LET'S IN THE BLACK COMMUNITY ARE PASTOR BOOKER VANCE, THE PARTNERSHIP TEAM LEAD AT ELEVATE, JUANETTE SIMS, CHAIR OF THE PEOPLE'S RESPONSE NETWORK AND SHERYL JOHNSON, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF PEOPLE FOR COMMUNITY RECOVERY.

THANKS TO THE THREE OF YOU FOR JOINING US.

SHERYL JOHNSON, LET'S START WITH YOU, PLEASE.

WHERE DOES HEAT AND EXTREME HEAT FACTOR INTO YOUR ORGANIZATION'S MISSION OF ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE?

>> WELL, YOU KNOW, IT'S PART OF OUR MISSION TO MAKE PEOPLE AWARE THAT THE CORRELATION BETWEEN POOR AIR QUALITY, HEAT AND PEOPLE WITH HEALTH-RELATED PROBLEMS, IN PARTICULAR CARDIOVASCULAR AND RESPIRATORY DISEASES AND PARTICULARLY AROUND PEOPLE WITH DIABETES AND IT'S ALL RELATED TO HEALTH.

MY MOM WAS ABLE TO CONNECT POLLUTION AND PUBLIC HEALTH-RELATED ISSUES ASSOCIATED WITH URBAN AND ENVIRONMENTAL, PARTICULARLY AROUND INDUSTRIAL POLLUTION.

SO IT HAS A LOT TO DO WITH IT AND IT ONLY MAKES THINGS MORE EXTREME WHEN IT COMES TO HEAT, TO EXTREME HEAT WHEN THE WEATHER IS REALLY HOT AS WE'VE SEEN IN THESE PAST FEW DAYS.

>> ABSOLUTELY.

PASTOR VANCE, HOW IS ELEVATE WORKING WITH THE CITY ON THE HEAT STUDY?

>> WELL, WE WERE PART OF A COLLABORATIVE EFFORT BETWEEN MANY ORGANIZATIONS LIKE MY SISTER'S GROUP WHERE WE DID SURVEYS IN COMMUNITIES TAKING TEMPERATURES IN THE MORNING, AFTERNOON, AND EVENING AND THEN PUTTING THE DATA TOGETHER BECAUSE THAT'S ONE OF THE PIECES THAT IS VERY IMPORTANT IS THE DATA DRIVEN KIND OF ANALYSIS THAT HELPS US PLAN APPROPRIATELY INTO THE FUTURE.

>> JUANETTE SIMS, WHAT ARE SOME OF THE CHALLENGES OLDER ADULTS IN BLACK COMMUNITIES ARE FACING WHEN IT COMES TO HEAT?

>> OLDER ADULTS, THE ELDERLY, ARE MORE ISOLATED.

AS YOU MENTIONED IN THE 1995 HEATWAVE, ERIC KLEINBERG'S BOOK HIGHLIGHTED ISOLATION AS ONE OF THE KEY SOCIAL FACTORS, BUT IN MY OPINION IT'S WORSE TODAY THAN IT WAS IN 1995.

WE HAVE A SMALLER BLACK POPULATION THAN WE DID IN 1995.

WE HAVE LESS BLACK CLUBS, LESS COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS THAN WE DID EVEN BACK THEN AND ALSO THE ONGOING COVID-19 PANDEMIC HAS REALLY INCREASED ISOLATION.

>> FEWER PEOPLE IN ISOLATION, NOT AS MANY PEOPLE AVAILABLE TO HELP OTHERS TO CHECK ON EACH OTHER.

>> YES.

>> SHERYL JOHNSON, YOU'VE OBSERVED IMPACTS OF LET'S ON OTHER FACETS OF LIFE LIKE FOOD SECURITY, SCHOOL PERFORMANCE, EVEN COMMUTING.

TELL US A BIT ABOUT THAT.

>> WELL, ACTUALLY WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT IF I COULD RELATE THIS BACK TO THE COVID AND JUST MENTION IS ONE OF THE THINGS THE PAST ADMINISTRATION CREATED WAS THE HEALTHY COMMUNITY EQUITY ZONES AND THAT RAPID RESPONSE ENABLED US TO GET OUT INTO OUR COMMUNITIES AND TALK TO PEOPLE AND DO EVENTS AND WAS ABLE TO VACCINATE 950 PEOPLE AND MY COMMUNITY WAS CONSIDERED ONE OF THE HARD HIT COMMUNITIES TO REACH OUT FOR VACCINATIONS.

SO WHEN YOU LOOK AT OPPORTUNITIES LIKE THAT THAT PROVIDED RESOURCES AND TECHNICAL SUPPORT, WE CAN HELP INTERVENE IN SOME OF THE CRISIS THAT COMES INTO OUR COMMUNITY.

SO WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT THE HEALTH, I MEAN WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT HEAT AND THE HEATWAVE PATTERN THAT WE HAVE HERE, WE NEED THE EMERGENCY -- WE NEED LIKE AN EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS AND RESPONSE STRATEGY, YOU KNOW, BECAUSE THE GOVERNMENT PEOPLE, THEY WORK TOGETHER.

THEY COLLABORATE, BUT THEY LEAVE THE COMMUNITY OUT OF IT AND I JUST THINK THAT THE GREATEST NEED IS TO HEAR THE COLLABORATION NEEDS TO BE INCLUSIVE OF THE RESIDENTS BECAUSE AS I MENTIONED EARLIER, YOU KNOW, YOU HAVE PEOPLE WHO ARE DIABETIC AND IF THERE'S AN ELECTRICAL OUTLET, YOU KNOW, HELP IS THERE FOR THEM.

THEIR FOOD IS JEOPARDIZED.

THAT'S A DOUBLE SWORD BECAUSE THAT CAN NEGATIVELY HAVE AN IMPACT ON THEIR QUALITY OF LIFE AT THAT PARTICULAR MOMENT AND IT PUTS THEM AT A RISK.

AND LIVING IN AN INDUSTRIALIZED KNOWN POLLUTED COMMUNITIES, THAT JUST TAKES IT TO A WHOLE NEW DIFFERENT LEVEL.

>> PASTOR VANCE, HOW ARE YOU ADVISING PEOPLE TO PROTECT THEMSELVES FROM HEAT LIKE WE HAD THIS PAST WEEK?

>> WE ADVISE FOLKS TO SHELTER SAFELY, TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF OPPORTUNITIES.

FOR EXAMPLE, WE WERE LAUGHING EARLIER ABOUT THE WATER.

WE'VE BEEN DISTRIBUTING WATER.

WE MAKE SURE FOLKS HAVE ADEQUATE WATER, BUT ALSO COOLING CENTERS HAVE BEEN VERY IMPORTANT AND MAKING SURE PEOPLE KNOW WHERE TO GO AND MAKING SURE THAT INFORMATION IS ALWAYS AVAILABLE AND THE CITY HAS REALLY STEPPED UP, BUT DO WE NEED TO DO MORE?

YES.

DO WE NEED TO BE MORE ENGAGED?

>> YES DO WE NEED TO GIVE PEOPLE MORE INFORMATION?

YES BECAUSE WE CAN ALWAYS DO MORE.

WHAT'S DONE HAS BEEN GREAT, BUT IT'S NOT ADEQUATE AND SUFFICIENT FOR THE CHALLENGES THAT WE'RE FACING.

>> DO YOU THINK PEOPLE ARE AWARE AND EDUCATED ABOUT HOW DANGEROUS THE HEAT CAN BE AND ARE THERE SOME MISCONCEPTIONS YOU HAVE TO FEET HOW TO RESPOND NO KIND OF HEAT?

>> I DON'T THINK CHICAGOANS ARE REALLY AWARE ABOUT THE DANGERS OF HEAT, KNOW THE SIGNS OF HEAT EXHAUSTION, HEATSTROKE AND WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO DO A MASS PUBLIC HEALTH EDUCATION AROUND THAT IN WE WANT TO SAVE LIVES.

>> SHERYL JOHNSON, WHAT ARE SOME OF THE SHORT TERM SOLUTIONS YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEE DONE IN THE CITY TO HELP MITIGATE THE IMPACT OF HEAT IN THE BLACK COMMUNITY?

>> WOULD LIKE MORE COMMUNITY OUTREACH LIKE FOR AN EXAMPLE, WHEN THE MEDIA TALKED ABOUT COOLING PLACES THE OTHER DAY, THEY ONLY LISTED ABOUT SIX OR SEVEN COOLING PLACES WITHIN THE CITY OF CHICAGO, BUT THERE ARE OTHER COOLING PLACES FOR AN EXAMPLE.

YOU GOT THE LIBRARIES.

YOU GOT THE PARK DISTRICT, BUT IF YOU'RE NOT CONVEYING THAT INFORMATION TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC AT HOME, THE COMMUNITY DON'T EVEN KNOW THAT THOSE REALLY EXIST IN THEIR COMMUNITY.

THEY ARE ONLY VISUALIZING WHAT THOSE COMMUNITY CENTERS THAT HAVE BEEN PUBLICIZED ON THE MEDIA, BUT SOME OF THE SHORT TERM THINGS WE NEED TO GET, WE NEED TO DEVELOP STRATEGIES FOR HOW TO ENGAGE IN OUR COMMUNITY JUST LIKE I MENTIONED EARLIER, THE AC EASY PROGRAM.

THAT WAS A PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN THE CITY AND COMMUNITY-BASED ORGANIZATIONS.

THEY PROVIDED THE TECHNICAL RESOURCES.

THEY PROVIDED THE TECHNICAL SUPPORT AND THE RESOURCES FOR US TO GET OUT AND BE ENGAGED IN OUR COMMUNITY AND I THINK THE HEATWAVE PROJECT THAT THEY ALREADY -- THAT PASTOR VANCE JUST MENTIONED, THAT WAS AN EFFECTIVE PROGRAM BECAUSE IT HAD 75 VOLUNTEERS INVOLVED IN THREE SHIFTS THAT ARE TALKING ABOUT MEASURING WHAT THE TEMPERATURE, WHAT THE HUMIDITY WAS LIKE AT THAT PARTICULAR TIME.

WE TEND TO NOT HAVE THOSE TYPE OF CONVERSATIONS AND VOLUNTEERS THAT IS HAPPENING IN OUR COMMUNITY AND LIKE I LIVE IN AN ISOLATED AREA, YOU KNOW.

NOTHING IS DRIVEN REALLY FAST ANYTHING INFORMATION COMING TO COMMUNITIES IN MY DISTRICT.

>> SOUNDS LIKE ALL OF YOU ARE SAYING, THEN -- >> WE NEED MORE EXPOSURE WHAT IS AVAILABLE, WHAT ARE THE RESOURCES AVAILABLE FROM THE CITY AND ALSO TO JUST LIKE WITH THE PANDEMIC -- >> I'M SORRY TO JUMP IN, SHERYL JOHNSON, SOUNDS LIKE OBVIOUSLY MORE WORK AND IT SOUNDS LIKE YOU'RE ASKING THE CITY TO PRESENT MORE AS WELL TO HELP