The San Joaquin Valley Collaborative to Protect Vulnerable Workers and Families from Extreme Heat Events (SJV Heat) is a project funded by the State of California Governor’s Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation. This project is a multifaceted strategy in collaboration with PHI’s Tracking California program, University of California, Berkeley, the Central California Environmental Justice Network, and the Terra Bella Unified School District middle school, Carl Smith Middle.
Our goal is to research and reduce harm caused by extreme heat events in the central valley.
The project approaches include:
1) the development of a heat resilience hub at the new TBUSD middle school gymnasium, where local families can access heat education, cooling, and safety resources, and community events;
2) field research with farmworkers to understand their experiences with extreme heat and to identify mitigation strategies; and
3) in person training sessions for farmworkers on how to prepare for and recognize heat stroke and stress, complete with resiliency packets offering supplies to help them stay cool.
Roots of Change plays a central role in the development and design of the resilience hub and its community programming, bringing together the team and the community to create a space that provides ongoing support and resources. This project will include a resilience hub learning community for interested parties with resilience hubs and those interested in starting a hub, and a Terra Bella resilience hub manual that includes takeaways, suggestions, and action items for best use of the hub and collaboration with surrounding communities and services.