Any community in the United States that is interested in learning more about heat is eligible to apply for this opportunity. Rural communities, territories, and Tribal communities are especially encouraged to apply.
The CCHM will prioritize applications submitted by communities who have experienced historical patterns of discrimination, underinvestment, and disenfranchisement, and have limited resources to conduct heat monitoring on their own.
At minimum, to receive the money, applicants must be a formally incorporated organization (e.g. a 501(c)(3) or similar) that can accept funds.
Any community who has questions about heat can apply, but we are especially interested in working with communities who have experienced historical patterns of discrimination, underinvestment, and disenfranchisement, and have limited resources. We are especially interested in receiving applications from rural communities, territories, and Tribal communities.
The Center for Collaborative Heat Monitoring will support community science observations and data collection on extreme heat so communities can observe, monitor and evaluate factors influencing heat risk at a local scale. The center will be based at the Museum of Life and Science in Durham, N.C. with additional technical support from CAPA Strategies, Utah State University, and AQUEHS Corp. The center will also include three additional geographically dispersed sites, each serving a different region of the U.S. This will enable work to engage regional communities and connect with existing networks for public education and engagement. In addition to the Museum of Life and Science, these hubs include the Arizona Science Center, the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry and the Museum of Science in Boston. The center will build on eight years of NIHHIS efforts to map urban heat islands in over 80 U.S. and international communities.
The goals of the Center for Collaborative Heat Monitoring include:
A novel applied participatory action research approach to equitably support communities in co-creating new knowledge about extreme heat
Delivery and integration of decision-support data, information, and knowledge through comprehensive models to quantitatively evaluate heat distribution and exposure across heat-imperiled communities to community members, policymakers, and the Center for Heat Resilient Communities
Supporting communities by enhancing expertise, agency, and self-determination to make decisions on how to prepare for and mitigate heat
Increasing literacy and community support for ongoing on-the-ground work about the hazards posed by extreme heat and climate change to meaningfully reduce the amount of heat mortality in the U.S.
It is important to note that the Center for Collaborative Monitoring will be accepting applications from all types of U.S. communities- not just urban communities. Rural communities, Tribal Nations, U.S. territories, and states that have not previously undergone heat mapping are especially encouraged to apply.
Principal investigators for the project include:
Mr. Max Cawley, Director of Climate Research and Engagement, North Carolina Museum of Life and Science (Lead Principal Investigator)
Dr. David Sittenfeld, Director of the Center for the Environment, Museum of Science, Boston (Principal Investigator)
Dr. Vivek Shandas, Founder and Advisor, Climate Adaptation Planning and Analytics (CAPA) Strategies (Principal Investigator)
Dr. Wei Zhang, Assistant Professor of Climate Science, Utah State University (Principal Investigator)
Dr. Daniel Mendoza, Founder and CEO, AQUEHS, Corp (Principal Investigator)
Questions regarding the application can be sent to info@collaborativeheatmonitoring.org and nihhis@noaa.gov.