In 2022, CAPA partnered with Northwest Family Services (NWFS) to assess local families’ exposure to and preparedness for extreme seasonal temperatures. NWFS is an Oregon non-profit serving low-income, primarily Latinx families in Multnomah, Clackamas, and Washington Counties. This project was part of a larger initiative, funded by the Oregon Health Authority, through which NWFS is developing community-informed, culturally-appropriate resources to support their clients through summer heat and winter cold. 

We conducted a Heat Watch mapping campaign in NWFS’s service area in the summer of 2022. This revealed particularly hot areas in the region, and allowed NWFS to see where high temperatures overlapped with high concentrations of their clientele. CAPA concurrently designed a bilingual (English and Spanish) social survey, which NWFS distributed at client-facing events throughout the summer. The survey asked participants about their experiences with heat, sources of exposure, adaptive behaviors, and concerns. A similar survey, focused on experiences, behaviors, and concerns regarding winter weather and extreme cold, was distributed to clients during the winter of 2022-2023. 

Together these activities, which combined spatial-environmental and social data, provided NWFS a picture of thermal exposure and needs among their clients. The complementary studies revealed not only where heat exposure was highest, but also opportunities for NWFS to provide targeted support in the form of information, material goods, and financial assistance with regard to both summer heat and winter weather conditions. Results may also inform future messaging and outreach strategies used by NWFS when working with families to improve preparedness, safety, and health outcomes for parents and children.