Public-interest urban heat research

Heat evidence belongs in public.

A field guide for people who need to see local heat patterns, understand the evidence, and help shape thoughtful action on cooling, shade, and public investment.

Explore the live platform Begin with Boston

A public-interest workspace for seeing local heat patterns, understanding the evidence, and helping shape thoughtful action on cooling, shade, and public investment.

Urban Heat Democratization home experience — Explore the living workspace; cite the underlying methods and evidence.

Begin with a question, not a conclusion

A heat map should start a conversation—not end one. Learn where a pattern comes from, what it leaves out, and what local knowledge is needed next.

Follow the evidence

Move from city layers to sources, methods, caveats, and a documented record. The work distinguishes observations, proxies, and exploratory scenarios.

Shape action openly

Use transparent scenarios to compare questions, constraints, and tradeoffs before public resources are committed.

A clear next step

Go from curiosity to an informed question.

Use the interactive experience to investigate the evidence, then return to the methods and sources before treating any output as a conclusion.

Explore Urban Heat Democratization

Continue your research

Primary sources, not a content maze.

Live city atlasInspect the bundled Boston study and its caveats.Scenario workspaceCompare transparent what-if options.Research wikiRead the full methods, equations, evidence, and governance field guide.Boston study guideUnderstand the city case before sharing it.