Translate page with Google

Story Publication logo April 18, 2024

Podcast: 'The Climate Divide,' Season 3

Washington, DC / USA - July 8, 2019: Torrential rain flooded parts of Washington, DC, stranding cars and causing havoc with traffic.
English

Flooding disproportionately afflicts low-income neighborhoods in Washington, D.C.

author #1 image author #2 image
Multiple Authors
SECTIONS

How to Get a Just Transition

In D.C., a combination of grassroots initiatives, city government programs and federal grants are seeking to address pressing climate and health issues and build resilience. Season 3 of "The Climate Divide" explores these solutions to see how they take shape in practice and what impact they will have on residents.


As a nonprofit journalism organization, we depend on your support to fund more than 170 reporting projects every year on critical global and local issues. Donate any amount today to become a Pulitzer Center Champion and receive exclusive benefits!


Trailer

In season 3 of "The Climate Divide," we’ll focus on the solutions various people and groups are coming up with to ensure that D.C. and its residents are more sustainable and resilient in the face of climate change. The interviews and stories covered will discuss how tree cover, park access and electrifying our homes and transportation will impact the residents in the District who are most vulnerable to various environmental and health hazards.

Episode 1: How To Protect Trees in a Time of Rapid Development

D.C. has been in the midst of a development boom fueled by rising demand for market rate housing and a need for more affordable housing. This has come at a cost for the District’s trees. In the first episode of season 3, we see how the tree protection nonprofit Casey Trees qualifies the state of the city’s trees in their annual report card and take a look at a bill that attempts to change D.C.’s tree preservation laws.

Episode 2: How the District is Doing at Creating Healthy Homes

Residents, advocates and officials recently testified at a D.C. Council hearing about the impact Mayor Muriel Bowser’s recently proposed budget will have on local climate programs. Episode 2 covers concerns that the budget will defund climate equity programs that aim to make home energy upgrades more affordable for low- and moderate-income households. We’ll also share highlights from one fair that aims to inform residents about numerous electric appliances and the different incentives and rebates that could make these products more affordable.

Episode 3: How Environmental Justice Advocate Brenda Richardson Prioritizes Access and Equity

This week, we’re featuring an interview with Brenda Richardson, the coordinator for the Anacostia Parks & Community Collaborative, which focuses on making the Anacostia River and surrounding natural areas more accessible for residents in Wards 7 and 8. In this conversation, Richardson discusses her concerns about flooding and extreme heat, the impacts of D.C.’s tighter budget and how she informs residents about climate change and resilience.

Episode 4: The State of the District’s Parks

The National Park Service owns most of the District’s parkland. How does this unique predicament affect our parks and green spaces? In this episode, host Marcelo Jauregui-Volpe speaks with Rachel Clark, the lead author of a report that explored the challenges and inequities that arise due to the Park Service’s management of D.C.’s parks and its D.C. maintenance backlog surpassing $1 billion. The episode also includes an update on plans to rehabilitate the Rock Creek Park Golf Course, a Park Service property where more than 1,000 trees are slated to be removed.

For additional reporting on the Rock Creek Park Golf Course tree removal, check out season 2, episode 2.

Episode 5: How Community Organizations Are Becoming More Climate Resilient

Some cities around the U.S. are responding to the growing threat of more extreme heat and intense storms with resilience hubs equipped with backup energy and offering supplies and information for residents during a disaster.

In this season finale, we cover the District’s first resilience hub at the FH Faunteroy Community Enrichment Center in the Deanwood neighborhood. The second part of the episode will feature an interview with Dr. Sacoby Wilson, the director of the Center for Community Engagement, Environmental Justice and Health (CEEJH) at the University of Maryland School of Public Health.

"The Climate Divide" is hosted, produced and edited by Marcelo Jauregui-Volpe. Claudia Peralta Torres provides additional editing and sound mixing support. Christine MacDonald is the series editor and executive director of Hola Cultura. Members of the Society and Culture team, part of Hola Cultura’s Storytelling Program for Experiential Learning, also contribute to this podcast.

RELATED TOPICS

yellow halftone illustration of an elephant

Topic

Environment and Climate Change

Environment and Climate Change
navy halftone illustration of a female doctor with her arms crossed

Topic

Health Inequities

Health Inequities

RELATED INITIATIVES

two cows

Initiative

U.S. Local News Reporting

U.S. Local News Reporting

Support our work

Your support ensures great journalism and education on underreported and systemic global issues