The Building Beat
The Building Beat
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Ep. 27 Heat Mapping: Tracking Memphis' Hottest Spots
30 minutes Posted Jun 3, 2026 at 11:30 am.
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Show notes
Host Nicholas Wardroup sits down with Sustainability Planner Robin Richardson to explore the 2025 Heat Watch Campaign and the massive community effort behind its large-scale heat‑mapping event. Robin explains how the project began, the local organizations and institutions that joined forces, how the initiative was funded, and the training volunteers received to collect accurate temperature data. She also breaks down what the heat map revealed about which areas of Memphis and Shelby County experience the most extreme temperatures. This collaborative project now provides valuable insights to guide future cooling strategies, inform potential community projects, and even help identify ideal locations for cooling centers during the hottest months of the year.


The resulting data from this project is available to review on the Office of Sustainability and Resilience's website: https://www.shelbycountyosr.com/heatwatch2025

Have questions for Nicholas or Robin? Email them to [email protected], and you'll get an answer on a future episode