As western Europe experiences its worst heatwave on record, the combination of extreme heat and humidity fueled by the climate crisis is rendering many cities nearly unlivable. While some face only minor inconveniences, low-income families and women are disproportionately affected by inadequate urban adaptation measures.
Asad Rehman, chief executive of Friends of the Earth, noted that the heatwave "throws a grenade into every vulnerability you already have," emphasizing that vulnerable or marginalized groups globally suffer the most from climate crisis-related hardships.
Urban Heat Island Effect Worsens Inequality
In densely populated cities, the socioeconomic divide is most acute. Studies show that trees can reduce the urban heat island effect by half, but green spaces are unevenly distributed. Poorer communities in cramped flats and houses suffer more. Rehman cited a study where tree shade lowered maximum surface temperatures by 19°C, and grass reduced them by 24°C.
Emily Dickinson, 36, lives with her partner Danny Swain, 34, and son Oliver, 10, in a one-bedroom apartment in Tufnell Park, London. The small space made it impossible for Oliver to study after his school closed on Tuesday, along with over 1,000 schools nationwide. The family lacks nearby green spaces, forcing them to walk in scorching heat to find cooler areas. "It's been unbearable," Dickinson said. "At school, he was probably more comfortable than in our living situation." For families like hers, the heatwave not only means entertaining a child in a hot home but also losing work. "We feel like we're the peasants that just have to deal with it," she added. Expenses like air conditioning and fans add an impossible burden to already strained finances. She hopes the government will address the inaccessibility of expensive cooling for low-income families but is pessimistic about effective change.
Childcare Challenges Amplified by Heat
Arcan Büyük Kahramanı, 43, and his wife Ayten, 41, had no choice but to keep their son Poyraz, seven, at their Islington café after his school closed. "We can't just close the shop," Arcan said, worried that Poyraz struggles to complete homework in the café and misses education. Without a family support network, childcare alternatives are scarce. "We can't leave him with anyone else … [or] afford to hire a babysitter," he added.
Even families with support networks face difficulties when extreme heat causes travel cancellations and delays. Kimberley Lloyd, 76, from Southend, cares for her grandson Wyatt, nine, two nights a week at her single-parent daughter's house. "If I can't get up here, she can't work," Kimberley said.
Charlotte Buxton, 41, from South Derbyshire, struggles with childcare for her five children, three of whom are autistic. The heatwave has made it harder to support their needs. She chose to keep her son with severe learning difficulties at home with his younger brother, whose school closed on Wednesday, feeling she could better safeguard him in the heat. However, this decision to prioritize her children's health comes at the expense of her own. "I have to choose all the time," she said. Since the heatwave began, Buxton has balanced full-time care, household duties, and managing her own disabilities, fibromyalgia and postural tachycardia syndrome. The prospect of more frequent and hotter heatwaves due to the climate crisis points to an unsustainable future for families like hers who are "struggling anyway."
Disproportionate Burden on Women
Buxton noted that women often bear the brunt of such crises. "It's always the mums," she said. A 2022 study found that nearly half of all working-age women perform an average of 45 hours of unpaid care per week. Gemma Derrick, a research policy and culture professor at the University of Bristol, found that women's productivity is more significantly affected than men's when they become parents. In emergencies like school closures during heatwaves, mothers are often the first to step in. "It unconsciously sidelines women," Derrick said, because mothers are assumed to be primary caregivers.
Rehman agreed, suggesting that extreme heat could worsen oppression of marginalized groups, especially women. The only solutions are preventive measures to slow global heating and adaptation measures. "Have we created conditions that put marginalized people at risk?" he asked. "It's not them that are causing [it], but they are the ones suffering."
