The spotlight
This summer, we’ve covered a number of innovative solutions that cities around the world are implementing at a community level to combat deadly heat — things like tree equity, shade structures, and reflective pavement. But as the planet continues to warm, there’s no way around one bedeviling fact: We’re going to need more air conditioning to keep many areas habitable and save lives in the face of rising temperatures.
The problem is that AC also contributes to planetary warming. “We’re kind of stuck in this doom loop of AC right now, where people install more AC, it makes the climate worse. Climate ‘worse’ means people need more AC, and those continue to increase emissions,” says Vince Romanin, an engineer and self-described “thermo nerd.”
So, in order to truly save lives, AC needs to be more equitably distributed to the populations most at…