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Students, faculty and community volunteers from more than a dozen colleges and universities across the state will take to the streets this summer.
The teams will collect data on how the heat changes in communities to understand where residents are most at risk during extreme heat waves.
Participants in the effort come from Virginia State Public University and private colleges including Bridgewater College, Emory & Henry College, Hampden-Sydney College, Hollins University, Marymount University, Randolph College, Roanoke College, Shenandoah University, Sweet Briar College and the University of Lynchburg, the University of Richmond and Virginia Wesleyan University. You will traverse Abingdon, Arlington, Farmville, Harrisonburg, Lynchburg, Petersburg, Richmond, Salem, Virginia Beach, and Winchester as part of the effort.
Using specially developed heat sensors, these “community scientists” will ride, cycle and walk prescribed routes to record air temperatures and humidity at three specific times of the day during the hottest time of summer.
The initiative is led by the Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges, a consortium of 15 colleges across the Commonwealth that collects donations and supports collaboration between institutions. In total, the facilities train more than 29,000 students each year, including 24,000 students.
The heat assessment project, called “Heat Watch”, includes the collection of very detailed near-surface air temperature data in order to relate land uses such as asphalt parking lots, green spaces and topography of the municipality to the temperatures. The results of the project include maps of air temperature and heat index, data sets with temperature observations and a final report for each location describing the methods, results and interpretations.
Previous campaigns in Richmond (2017), Norfolk (2018) and Roanoke (2020) showed temperature differences of up to 16 degrees Fahrenheit between the coolest and hottest places at the same time.
The data generated by the project will feed into many existing programs and initiatives in the Commonwealth, including public health, energy efficiency, climate change mitigation and resilience, emergency preparedness and management, urban forestry, land use planning and community partnerships and student engagement, according to the organizers.
Project partners include CAPA Strategies, Capital One, the Science Museum of Virginia and the Virginia Department of Forestry.
“Community science initiatives like this heat mapping campaign have contributed immensely to our understanding that environmental stressors are not equally perceived in communities here in the Commonwealth,” said Science Museum of Virginia Chief Scientist Dr. Jeremy Hoffman. “We look forward to supporting these community-based projects that not only help students connect theory of science with real-world resilience strategies to apply in their communities, but also build social cohesion and educate the future green workforce.”
Lara Johnson, urban and community forestry program manager for the Virginia Department of Forestry, said her agency is excited to be part of the initiative.
“We look forward to helping with data collection from heat islands and finding solutions,” she said.
For more information about the project or to join teams collecting data, contact Matthew Shank, president of the Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges, at shank@vfic.org.