The summer of 2023 saw the globe experience some of the hottest days in recorded history. Yet the impact of this heat was not evenly felt. As climate journalist Jeff Goodell wrote, “Poverty equals vulnerability. If you have money, you can turn up the air conditioning, stock up on food and bottled water, and install a backup generator in case there’s a blackout.”

In the U.S., wealth is deeply connected to race and homeownership. Which means that Black renters, specifically, face a disproportionate burden of the impacts of climate change and extreme heat.

The analysis in this report finds that in 2020, Black renters had greater energy insecurity than white renters, Black homeowners, and white homeowners—meaning they were unable to pay an energy bill, forwent crucial bills such as rent or groceries, or kept their homes at unsafe temperatures. Such energy insecurity can be a lethal manifestation of climate vulnerability; beyond the cost burden of staying cool, it puts lives at greater risk of heat-related illness and death, impairs wealth-building, and hampers well-being.

In previous publications, we have argued for implementing reparative climate policies that would address the root causes of environmental racism and inequity while supporting policy responses that build the resilience and adaptive capacity of historically marginalized communities. Similarly, this report suggests state and local government interventions that could fit within a reparative policy framework, including energy bill assistance, retrofitting and weatherizing homes, investing in neighborhood heat resilience, and expanding access to affordable, renewable energy sources. While funding for these solutions exists, it is often only through minor portions of larger climate policies that do not directly target Black renters or their neighborhoods, despite their high vulnerability and need.

Extreme heat is the deadliest climate hazard in the United States. And while heat itself does not discriminate, centuries of racist housing policies such as redlining magnify its impact. Such policies segregated Black neighborhoods, induced lower rate rates of homeownership, and ensured underinvestment in those communities—all of which make Black residents more vulnerable to extreme heat. In 2021, the Environmental Protection Agency reported that Black people are 40% more likely than non-Black people to live in areas with the highest projected increase in mortality rates due to extreme temperatures.

The underinvestment of Black neighborhoods means a disproportionate share of Black residents live in older homes without air conditioning or proper insulation, and on streets that lack green spaces to help lower ambient temperatures. One study found that 94% of formerly redlined areas are hotter than non-redlined areas within the same county by as much as 12.6 degrees Fahrenheit.

Read the full article about extreme heat and Black renters by Hannah Stephens, Manann Donoghoe, and Andre M. Perry at Brookings.