It's hot, y'all. I live in Florida, and I was recently reflecting on how different the weather is now compared to when I moved here in 2000. It's not just in my mind! Florida now has double the days per year at or above 90 degrees relative to the 1970s.

Infographic showing the number of 90 degree days per year in Florida, with 60 in the 1970s and 120 in the 2020s, from WFLA Tampa.

I've written about this topic in the past as a co-author on an article about the twin health threats of climate change and COVID-19. The argument then and now is simple: extreme weather is not just a matter of personal risk. It's a matter of equity.

With this year shaping up to be one of the hottest on record, it’s time to talk about how heat affects not just our bodies but our boundaries. Heat is a public health issue, but it's also a policy issue. When laws restrict access to water, shade, or public cooling centers, or they criminalize the presence of unhoused and housing-insecure individuals seeking relief, our most basic boundaries are being violated.

And that doesn’t even begin to cover the ways extreme heat affects workers, caregivers, and people with chronic conditions who don’t always have the luxury of staying cool or staying home. Do you have A/C? Have you ever stopped to think about what life would be like without it? In the U.S., more than 35 million people live in a home without an air conditioner, and the people most impacted are Black, Hispanic, and lower income households.

Figure from KFF showing the share of households experiencing unhealthy temperatures by race and/or ethnicity of the head of household and income, 2020. — **Black, Hispanic, and lower income households are more likely than White and higher income households to report reducing or foregoing basic needs due to their home energy bills in the past year.**

Heat, like so many other challenges, is not just a matter of individual choices. It’s a matter of public policy, infrastructure, and access. As we continue to see the compounding effects of climate change, workplace demands, and insufficient resources, it’s clear: equity must be at the center of our response.

So in this edition of The Better Boundaries Brief we break it down: what you can do to protect yourself, what we need to push for collectively, and how to stay grounded when the temperature and the tension keep rising.

Data Highlights: Extreme Heat and Public Health

🌡️ In 2023, more than 2,300 people died from heat-related illness in the U.S., the highest number in 45 years.
→PBS News, 2023 set a record for U.S. heat deaths. Why 2024 could be even deadlier
🥵 Outdoor workers—especially in agriculture, construction, and delivery—are among the most at risk from heat-related illness, especially when laws block water breaks and rest periods.
→ OSHA, Heat Illness Prevention Campaign
🏘️ People of color, low-income people, people who are immigrants, and people with limited English proficiency are particularly vulnerable to climate change, from food distribution and production to respiratory illnesses.
→ EPA, Climate Change and the Health of Socially Vulnerable People

If you have 8 minutes, or even 4 minutes, listen to Tim's story - he was a worker on his second day at a construction site when he died of heat-related illness. It was his employer's responsibility to create safe work conditions, and they failed.

Equity & Inclusion: Who’s Left in the Heat

🧑🏽🌾 Workers in states like Texas and Florida are losing legal protections, as new laws roll back mandatory water breaks and rest requirements for outdoor laborers.
→The Better Boundaries Brief, When Laws Threaten Our Physical Boundaries: The Impact of Harmful Legislation on Worker Health
🏚️ Unhoused individuals face criminalization for seeking shade or shelter. Anti-encampment laws in several cities directly impact people’s ability to survive extreme heat, and fail to provide alternatives to a population that is particularly vulnerable to adverse physical and mental health impacts due to extreme heat.
→ Texas Homeless Network, The Disproportionate Impact of Climate Change on People Experiencing Homelessness
💧 While the Safe Drinking Water Act of 1974 set standards for contaminants in potable water and led to significant investments in water and wastewater infrastucture, communities of color were often excluded.
→ GQ, The Hidden Racial Inequities of Access to Water in America

Boundary Highlight: Protecting our Physical Health

We often talk about boundaries in the metaphorical sense. But in the summer, boundaries become physical—what our bodies can tolerate, where we can safely go, and how systems either support or ignore those limits.

Setting boundaries around heat might look like:

Saying no to outdoor events when it's too hot for safety, or, like me, only going out after sunset 🤣🤣🤣
Taking hydration and cooling breaks, even during work hours - no matter what your role is
Being unashamed and unapologetic as a peri-menopausal or menopausal woman in carrying around a fan and a large water bottle

Law & Policy: When the System Heats Up

🛑 While Florida and Texas have passed laws that override local heat protection ordinances, seven states have passed laws to protect workers from extreme heat.
→ Center for American Progress, States Must Lead the Way To Protect Workers From Extreme Heat
🧊 Public cooling centers are lifesaving, but access often depends on policy decisions at the state or city level. We need more funding and broader access.
→ National Center for Healthy Housing, https://nchh.org/information-and-evidence/learn-about-healthy-housing/emergencies/extreme-heat/cooling-centers-by-state/
🏢 Employers have an obligation to ensure the workplace is free from known hazards, like extreme heat. This means taking action like establishing a heat illness prevention plan and providing training on risks and prevention.
→ OSHA, Heat Illness Prevention: Employer Responsibilities
🔋 Long-term infrastructure investment is needed to expand green spaces, heat-resilient housing, and reliable access to utilities during extreme weather.
→ Network for Public Health Law, Equitable Law and Policy Solutions to Mitigate Health Risks from Climate Change and COVID-19

Table from the Center for American Progress showing the seven states that have standards specifically designed to protect workers from extreme heat

Actions: What You Can Do

✅ Individual

Hydrate and cool off regularly, especially if you're working or moving outside. Don't be ashamed or afraid to assert this right to protect your physical health.
Learn about and share heat safety tips with your coworkers.
Document unsafe working conditions and report them (anonymously if needed) to OSHA or local health departments.

🏢 Organizational

Offer indoor spaces for cooling and authorize flexible hours during extreme heat.
Review safety protocols for heat exposure and establish a heat illness prevention plan if relevant to your workforce.
Communicate clearly about risks and safety, not just productivity.

🌍 Systemic

Advocate for laws that protect outdoor workers, rather than punish them.
Fund community cooling efforts like parks, tree planting, and public water stations.
Challenge local ordinances that criminalize heat survival behaviors.

Closing Thought

Responses to extreme heat are not just about personal health. They're also a policy choice. The policy and infrastructure to address extreme heat provide a boundary line between safety and neglect, equity and injustice, care and control.

We cannot have healthy people without a healthy planet, and while we can’t control the temperature, we can choose to respond with care, with courage, and with action. Being healthy requires an environment that we can all be healthy in.

“A ruined planet cannot sustain human lives in good health. A healthy planet and healthy people are two sides of the same coin.” – Dr. Margaret Chan, Former Executive Director of the World Health Organization