FHC Conference

Heat kills more people each year than other disasters, exacerbates storm impacts and low-income residents are disproportionately impacted. Leading communities in Florida are taking action to reduce the impacts of increased heat to their communities and housing.  Older and poorly insulated housing stock, new developments that lack of shade, and inefficient HVAC can contribute to increased internal temperatures and energy use. Implementing energy-efficiency programs, cooling retrofits, solar plus battery storage for post-disaster and other engineering improvements are proven to reduce high energy burdens, improve health, and housing affordability. In this session, experts from the Florida Clinicians for Climate Action will provide an overview of the health impacts on vulnerable populations; the International Center for Appropriate and Sustainable Technology (ICAST) will highlight major energy efficiency retrofits for LIHTC and HUD multifamily developers and FHC will provide recommendations for emergency cooling programs, post-disaster preparedness, and building organizational capacity. Attendees will leave with a plan for addressing heat in their organization.