Communities Work to Cool City Neighborhoods with Plants
2022-10-17
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1Reggie Carrillo is an environmental activist who lives in the Southwestern U.S. city of Phoenix, Arizona.
2He recently told the Associated Press that climate change affects the temperatures of city neighborhoods.
3"To understand climate change, to understand the urban heat island effect, you have to understand the history," said Carrillo.
4He wants to share his knowledge with his neighbors to cool his community.
5In Phoenix, some neighborhoods do not have many trees and open spaces.
6Some reports say temperatures are as much as seven degrees Celsius higher than in other areas of Phoenix with more trees.
7Those parts of the city were built with mostly roads and buildings but not much green space.
8That has helped create what Carrillo and others call an "urban heat island."
9Carrillo has learned about the city's history by attending the Urban Heat Leadership Academy that is run by groups trying to conserve natural resources.
10They are working to add green space to parts of Phoenix that have not received attention.
11The Nature Conservancy is providing some of the money.
12The international group is known for projects that protect natural areas.
13But it is now getting involved in cities like Phoenix and Atlanta, Georgia by planting trees and building community gardens.
14The academy holds classes by video link on Saturday mornings.
15It helps teach people like Carrillo about why their living areas are so hot.
16It also teaches them how to organize activities that will help cool things down.
17They discuss air and water quality and how to push for better treatment of parts of the city where minorities live.
18Phoenix is in the Sonoran Desert in the American Southwest.
19But other parts of the country known for cooler temperatures - such as Seattle, Washington - are also reporting high temperatures.
20Other parts of the U.S. are seeing a wider range of temperatures.
21For example, Philadelphia winters can be well below zero Celsius.
22But the city also has hot summers.
23A group called Trust for Public Land is working in Philadelphia in the same way as the group in Phoenix.
24The group is making public art to teach people about climate change and is giving out small trees for people to plant.
25Owen Franklin leads the Trust for Public Land in Pennsylvania.
26He said the project in Philadelphia is making people think about why some parts of the city experience temperatures up to 11 degrees Celsius hotter than others.
27He has talked with people who live in those hot neighborhoods.
28He said people who live in poor parts of the city often sleep with their windows closed on hot nights because they are worried about crime.
29Franklin said "the rest of us need to know what people experience" so organizations such as his can "combat the problem."
30In Phoenix, Carrillo is working with others who went to the Urban Heat Leadership Academy.
31They want to build a walking area that will be known as a "cool corridor,"
32a place that has local plants that can help reduce temperatures.
33He also is organizing events to talk to people and to learn what they want.
34Anna Bettis works with The Nature Conservancy in Arizona.
35She said the first class last year had about 40 people.
36It discussed the science of how plants can cool living areas.
37"We are trying to help people work on solutions that will cool down their neighborhoods over the long term," she said.
38Bettis talked about shade, or the area of darkness created when something blocks the sun.
39She said, "...you can see how unequally it is distributed in some neighborhoods."
40Summer temperatures in Phoenix can be dangerous.
41One day last summer, the high was over 46 degrees Celsius.
42In the last year, the heat was blamed for over 300 deaths.
43Other people in Phoenix are working with Carrillo on ways to reduce the heat.
44He talked with students from a design class at nearby Arizona State University during an event at a school for young children.
45One of the school teachers was Teresa Silva.
46She said many of the students walk a long distance without shade in order to get to class.
47The temperature can be 37 degrees, she said.
48The parents of most students have more than one job and do not have the time to drive them to school.
49Curtis Merritt is planting trees in another part of Phoenix.
50He is another graduate of the academy, like Carrillo.
51Merritt said many people have trouble getting enough food each day.
52So he is planting fruit trees - figs, apples, and oranges.
53"What's great about this project is that I not only get to help cool down my neighborhood by teaching...," said Merritt.
54"Someday with those trees I'll be able to feed my neighbors, too."
55I'm Faith Pirlo. And I'm Dan Friedell.
1Reggie Carrillo is an environmental activist who lives in the Southwestern U.S. city of Phoenix, Arizona. 2He recently told the Associated Press that climate change affects the temperatures of city neighborhoods. 3"To understand climate change, to understand the urban heat island effect, you have to understand the history," said Carrillo. He wants to share his knowledge with his neighbors to cool his community. 4In Phoenix, some neighborhoods do not have many trees and open spaces. Some reports say temperatures are as much as seven degrees Celsius higher than in other areas of Phoenix with more trees. Those parts of the city were built with mostly roads and buildings but not much green space. That has helped create what Carrillo and others call an "urban heat island." 5Carrillo has learned about the city's history by attending the Urban Heat Leadership Academy that is run by groups trying to conserve natural resources. They are working to add green space to parts of Phoenix that have not received attention. 6The Nature Conservancy is providing some of the money. The international group is known for projects that protect natural areas. But it is now getting involved in cities like Phoenix and Atlanta, Georgia by planting trees and building community gardens. 7The academy holds classes by video link on Saturday mornings. It helps teach people like Carrillo about why their living areas are so hot. It also teaches them how to organize activities that will help cool things down. They discuss air and water quality and how to push for better treatment of parts of the city where minorities live. 8Phoenix is in the Sonoran Desert in the American Southwest. But other parts of the country known for cooler temperatures - such as Seattle, Washington - are also reporting high temperatures. 9Other parts of the U.S. are seeing a wider range of temperatures. For example, Philadelphia winters can be well below zero Celsius. But the city also has hot summers. 10A group called Trust for Public Land is working in Philadelphia in the same way as the group in Phoenix. The group is making public art to teach people about climate change and is giving out small trees for people to plant. 11Owen Franklin leads the Trust for Public Land in Pennsylvania. He said the project in Philadelphia is making people think about why some parts of the city experience temperatures up to 11 degrees Celsius hotter than others. 12He has talked with people who live in those hot neighborhoods. He said people who live in poor parts of the city often sleep with their windows closed on hot nights because they are worried about crime. Franklin said "the rest of us need to know what people experience" so organizations such as his can "combat the problem." 13In Phoenix, Carrillo is working with others who went to the Urban Heat Leadership Academy. They want to build a walking area that will be known as a "cool corridor," a place that has local plants that can help reduce temperatures. He also is organizing events to talk to people and to learn what they want. 14Anna Bettis works with The Nature Conservancy in Arizona. She said the first class last year had about 40 people. It discussed the science of how plants can cool living areas. 15"We are trying to help people work on solutions that will cool down their neighborhoods over the long term," she said. Bettis talked about shade, or the area of darkness created when something blocks the sun. She said, "...you can see how unequally it is distributed in some neighborhoods." 16Summer temperatures in Phoenix can be dangerous. One day last summer, the high was over 46 degrees Celsius. In the last year, the heat was blamed for over 300 deaths. 17Other people in Phoenix are working with Carrillo on ways to reduce the heat. He talked with students from a design class at nearby Arizona State University during an event at a school for young children. 18One of the school teachers was Teresa Silva. She said many of the students walk a long distance without shade in order to get to class. The temperature can be 37 degrees, she said. The parents of most students have more than one job and do not have the time to drive them to school. 19Curtis Merritt is planting trees in another part of Phoenix. He is another graduate of the academy, like Carrillo. Merritt said many people have trouble getting enough food each day. So he is planting fruit trees - figs, apples, and oranges. 20"What's great about this project is that I not only get to help cool down my neighborhood by teaching...," said Merritt. "Someday with those trees I'll be able to feed my neighbors, too." 21I'm Faith Pirlo. And I'm Dan Friedell. 22Dan Friedell adapted this story for VOA Learning English based on a report by The Associated Press. 23______________________________________________________________________ 24Words in This Story 25urban -adj. related to cities 26conserve -v. to keep something from being damaged or destroyed 27minority -adj. a group of people who are different from the larger group of people in an area or country for reasons such as race or religion 28range -n. a series of numbers that include the highest and lowest of values in the series 29combat -v. to fight 30corridor -n. a narrow piece of land 31distribute -v. to spread 32______________________________________________________________________ 33We want to hear from you. Do you think American cities will be able to cool down? 34We have a new comment system. Here is how it works: 35Each time you return to comment on the Learning English site, you can use your account and see your comments and replies to them. 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