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Heat Resilience
The Children's Council studies the effect of extreme heat and other climate shocks on children, infants, and pregnant people and develops policies and resources to mitigate harm.
During the spring of 2024, the Mayor’s Office of Early Childhood partnered with the Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University (HCDC) to host the Boston Extreme Heat and Early Childhood Roundtable series. This work was inspired by recent research on climate resilience, and how extreme heat affects early childhood development and health.
The Roundtable produced three ongoing workstreams:
- Third Space: Identify spaces in Boston neighborhoods where pregnant people, babies, toddlers, and their caregivers can go during heat emergencies. These "third spaces" should include developmentally appropriate programs to meet their needs.
- Communications: Increase public awareness of the dangers of extreme heat for young children and pregnant people by making resources available and accessible in diverse communities. We will adapt current heat materials and messages to include messages directed at families with small children and pregnant people as well as partner with hospitals, pediatricians and obstetricians to deliver messages more broadly.
- Early Education and Care Facilities: Understand and meet the needs of licensed early education and childcare facilities during extreme heat events. Meeting their needs could include retrofitting of facilities, or providing air conditioning units and other resources.
The Mayor’s Office of Early Childhood is leading the work to develop these heat-resilience policies and programs ahead of Summer 2025.
