NY Climate Tech: August 7 - August 14
WE ACT's Extreme Heat Coalition, happy hours to cool you down, and a tour of the world's largest soil rooftop farm!
Hi friends,
It has been a hot and steamy summer, with the hottest global temperature ever recorded on planet earth. The impact of high temperatures on low income communities is of prime focus for us in this week’s newsletter and we’re excited to feature a guest post from Caleb Smith of WE ACT for Environmental Justice, one of New York City’s most well-known climate justice organizations. They dive into the Extreme Heat Coalition WEACT has set up with other groups across New York, and how they’re coming together to promote sustainable and equitable development across the city.
We’ve got quite the lineup this week. Here are our top picks:
Cool down with a double header happy hour with Distributed Energy TaskForce and Women in Sustainability and Energy on Wednesday.
Love your hot wheels? Check out the latest e-bike models at the Zero to Sixty Tour on Saturday.
Wrap up the weekend with a Private Sunset Tour @ Brooklyn Grange, World's Largest Soil Rooftop Farm! We were lucky enough to host an event for the NY Climate Tech Community on this rooftop last year and highly recommend a visit!
Finally, giving you all a heads up for our NY Climate Tech Summer Meetup, next Tuesday, August 22 at the beautiful CitizenM Hotel rooftop. We look forward to seeing you and stay tuned for our NY Climate Week extravaganza guide coming soon!
As always, scroll down for the full list of upcoming events.
Cheers,
The Climate Tech Cities Team
Hot Take: Climate Justice and Extreme Heat: How to Save Lives in NYC
Guest Post by Caleb Smith, WE ACT for Environmental Justice
Tl;dr: Do you want New York City to be prepared for more record breaking temperatures to come? The Extreme Heat Coalition is advocating for swift action to cool our public and private spaces by strategically expanding urban canopy for the long term, codifying and funding cooling centers, and mandating a maximum indoor temperature. Get engaged in our Action Network campaign today!
Extreme heat is one of the deadliest impacts of climate change, and communities of color are the most affected. In New York City, for example, 50 percent of the heat-related deaths are among Black/African American people, even though they make up only 25 percent of the city’s population. This disparity can be traced back to policies like redlining that have resulted in decades of divestment in these communities, which are now burdened with older, often poorly maintained and energy inefficient housing stock, fewer street trees and green spaces, and lower wage job opportunities.
New York City and New York State need to respond to the public health threat of extreme heat, and the responses they have undertaken to date have been poorly funded and have failed to address the inequitable impacts of heat. While a Cooling Center program has been launched to provide residents who don’t have air conditioning at home relief from dangerous temperatures, the Comptroller’s Overheated, Underserved Report found half of all cooling centers were listed as being closed on Saturdays, and 83% were listed as being closed on Sundays despite emergency conditions. Likewise, residents can only access a map of cooling centers after a heat advisory has been announced.
That’s why WE ACT for Environmental Justice joined forces with South Bronx Unite, Earthjustice, Groundwork Hudson Valley, New York Disaster Interfaith Services, NRDC, and HeartShare Human Services to form the Extreme Heat Coalition, with the goal of catalyzing legislative action that protects heat-vulnerable urban communities throughout the state.
WE ACT’s mission to “build healthy communities by ensuring that people of color and/or low income residents participate meaningfully in the creation of sound and fair environmental health and protection policies and practices” extends to empowering communities to thrive in spite of climate injustices.
The Extreme Heat Coalition recently hosted its first workshop featuring three policy strategies that can help reduce heat stress:
codifying cooling centers
mandating a maximum indoor temperature
establishing an Urban Forest Master Plan
Amending the New York City Charter to codify Cooling Centers as a funded program (it currently has no operating budget) of the Office of Emergency Management would allocate the appropriate resources to keep locations open during heatwaves, train staff on the symptoms of heat stress, and make them more accessible through improved wayfinding.
A maximum indoor temperature is a common sense update to our building code. There is already an enforced minimum temperature during the winter months, it’s time to protect tenants from dangerously hot temperatures as well. Putting all of the onus exclusively on tenants to regulate the temperature of their apartments has resulted in an estimated 370 heat-related deaths per year over the last decade.
Lastly, establishing an Urban Forest Master Plan would help promote sustained, equitable access to the environmental services provided by trees such as cooling, flood mitigation, filtration of air pollution. In the first four months of fiscal year 2023, the Department of Parks and Recreation failed to keep up with last year’s tree planting pace, with 45% fewer trees planted within the same time period—a 15 year low!
Get involved. Visit the Extreme Heat Coalition page on WE ACT's website to support our action campaign on these policies or attend an upcoming event. And if your organization is active in a major metropolitan area and invested in climate justice, you can also join the coalition by contacting caleb.smith@weact.org.
🌎 Climate Tech Cities and Streetlife Ventures Startup and Talent Platforms
Climate Tech Cities and Streetlife Ventures are launching new platforms to support climate founders, funders, and career transitioners! There is no shortage of great companies raising money for their groundbreaking ideas, great investors looking to support with capital, and great talent living the mantra that every job is a climate job. We can’t wait to hear from you!
Community Shoutouts
💧 Environmental Tech Lab Challenges
Applications are open for the inaugural Environmental Tech Lab, a public-private initiative between the NYC Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and Partnership Fund for New York City to test new technologies to help solve pressing challenges facing the city’s water and wastewater network. This year’s challenges focus on helping DEP better utilize data and technology and improve operational efficiency at New York City’s water and wastewater utility.
💧 Governors Island Climate Solutions Piloting Program
The Climate Solutions Piloting Program is a new call for piloting and demonstration projects addressing climate mitigation, climate adaptation, and climate and environmental justice. The program is led by the Trust for Governors Island’s new Living Lab as part of the Center for Climate Solutions, dedicated to preparing New York City and cities around the world for climate change. Applications for the Climate Solutions Challenge, a recurring summer challenge with new themes and a $10,000 cash prize, are due by August 15, 2023. This year’s theme, “Water Abundance,” seeks proposals addressing how water can help to power climate solutions that grow blue and green jobs and create healthier communities.
Events This Week
💩 NYPL Green: Compost Drop Off: Wed, Aug 9
🍻 Distributed Energy TaskForce NYC Happy Hour: Wed, Aug 9
👷♀️ Women in Sustainability and Energy: BOYC: Wed, Aug 9
🚲 E-Bikes from Zero to Sixty Tour: Sat, Aug 12
🧑🌾 Private Sunset Tour @ Brooklyn Grange, World's Largest Soil Rooftop Farm: Sun, Aug 13
Read on for more details about this week’s happenings and upcoming events this month
Upcoming Events
☕️ Climate Cafe (8/14): Mon, Aug 14
🗺️ Financial Institutions' Responsibility for Climate Action: Tue, Aug 15
🌲 Implications of SEC Climate Rule on Capital Markets: Wed, Aug 16
🌆 New York City's Local Laws 94 and 97, Are you ready?: Wed, Aug 16
🎲 August Energy & Climate Game Night: Wed, Aug 16
🥂 Green Drinks Brooklyn: Wed, Aug 16
🟢 Nick Fuller Googins presents The Great Transition, with Gina Chung: Wed, Aug 16
🌳 How to Save a Planet w/ XR: Wed, Aug 16
🎬 How to Blow up a Pipeline: Wed, Aug 16
♻️ GreenHomeNYC Tour of SIMS Material Recycling Facility: Thu, Aug 17
📽️ The Wandering Earth 2 | Film Screening & Climate Panel: Sat, Aug 19
🖼️ Raw Material: Re-Wilding The Body | Cilla Vee Life Arts: Sat, Aug 19
🧵 Community Brunch @ The Sustainable Fashion Community Center: Sun, Aug 20
🗽 NY Climate Tech Summer Meetup: Tue, Aug 22
🌏 Climate Town Town Hall: Wed, Aug 23
✍️ Botanical Drawing an Urban Meadow w/ NCL Artist Resident Jessica Dalyrmple: Thu, Aug 24
🎉 Climate Movement Summer Celebration: Sat, Aug 26
Event Details
💩 NYPL Green: Compost Drop Off
When: Wed, Aug 9th from 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM
Where: Francis Martin Library, 2150 University Avenue, The Bronx, NY
Stop by Francis Martin Wednesday between 12 - 1 pm to learn about the composting process and drop off your food scraps. What to bring: Fruits, vegetables, eggshells, coffee, tea, nuts, dried flowers and houseplants (depotted).
🍻 Distributed Energy TaskForce NYC Happy Hour
When: Wed, Aug 9th from 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM
Where: David Energy Systems, 417 Grand Street, Brooklyn, NY
Hey DER TF! Join us for our monthly hang on the second Wednesday of each month. There isn't a reoccurring agenda, but we may have guests or topics to discuss for a particular events.Note: the location has changed. Still in Williamsburg, but now at David Energy's office.
👷♀️ Women in Sustainability and Energy: BOYC
When: Wed, Aug 9th from 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM
Where: Building Energy Exchange
BE-Ex’s Women in Sustainability & Energy (WISE) series is pleased to host a BYOC – Bring Your Own Colleague community event, encouraging attendees to invite their work colleagues and connect with industry professionals of all ages and sectors. During the evening, we’ll be hosting an exciting game of networking bingo which includes chances to win prizes!
🚲 E-Bikes from Zero to Sixty Tour: Inside CLIP Bike & Tarform Motorcycles
When: Sat, Aug 12th from 10:30 AM to 12:00 PM
Where: Building 92 (Flushing Ave at Carlton Ave), 63 Flushing Avenue, Brooklyn, NY
Meet the founders of two incredible businesses developing electric bikes on this fun tour: Taras Kravtchouk, CEO & Founder, Tarform Motorcyles and Clement de Alcala, COO & Co-Founder, CLIP Bike. Start your tour off with a step inside Newlab to learn about the business accelerator’s role in pioneering frontier technologies that support sustainable materials, energy, and mobility before meeting Newlab-based CLIP Bike.
🧑🌾 Private Sunset Tour @ Brooklyn Grange, World's Largest Soil Rooftop Farm
When: Sun, Aug 13th from 6:30 PM to 7:45 PM
Where: Brooklyn Navy Yard, Building 92, Brooklyn, NY
Did you know that the world’s largest soil rooftop farm is located in Brooklyn? Once you ascend eleven stories up a building in the historic Brooklyn Navy Yard complex, you'll be greeted by a lush farm that's growing a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, and everything in between. It's time to uncover one of New York's most interesting green spaces like never before.
Join the Fun!
Submit Events
We know all of you are cooking up great events across that highlight the latest and greatest in our collective effort to save our city - and our planet! 🌍 We would love to spread the word. Please share any event details and we'll add them to the list!
A Global Network of Local Communities
We are expanding! We started as an 8-person dinner and now have over 8,000 members in our community. We’ve had people across the world reach out to us to start their own chapters - so we’re launching a new Climate Tech Cities organization this year! If you have friends who are interested in becoming chapter leads, please share the word. Here’s to a global network of local communities making a positive impact!