To feel less heat, we need more trees in our cities

Aerial view of trees planted in Lincoln Park neighborhood. The city announced in April 2022 that it planned to plant 75,000 more trees over the next five years. Growing more trees in urban areas will help fight climate change. (Provided)

All of us suffered last week through day after day of the hottest average temperatures ever recorded on Earth. Now imagine it had been 10% hotter where you live.

That wasn’t hard to do for residents in urban neighborhoods where the amount of pavement, concrete and glass far surpasses the number of leafy trees. The people who live there pay a heat tax that impacts their health and their economic well-being.