Category: Take Action
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Data Centres, AI, Urban Heat, and Community Action comes together in Western Sydney
We are witnessing a data centre boom all across the globe and increasingly in Australia. Driven by growing demand for AI and digital services, data centres rely on heavy infrastructure and energy-intensive cooling systems. They attract billion-dollar global investment and in NSW, are being moved quickly through planning pipelines. This process has left limited clarity…
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Cool Walks Toolkit: Released Today
Turning local knowledge into cooler, fairer streets As Australian summers become longer and more intense, the way our neighbourhoods are designed is increasingly shaping how safe and comfortable they are to live in. This week, Sweltering Cities is releasing a new resource to help communities take action: the Cool Walks Toolkit. Developed in collaboration with…
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VIDEO: Hot City, Cool People
An extreme heat awareness event – Parramatta, Sydney Summers in Sydney are getting longer, hotter and more extreme. On 5 Feb 2026, we filled Parramatta Town Hall in Western Sydney for our biggest in person event yet Hot City, Cool People to mark Extreme Heat Awareness Day. Extreme Heat Awareness Day is dedicated to having…
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Extreme Heat Awareness Day 2026: Here’s how it went
On February 4th 2026, we marked the second Extreme Heat Awareness Day. It was the biggest ever national action on heat in Australia, and it happened because of people like you. Launched by Sweltering Cities and the Australian Red Cross, Extreme Heat Awareness Day brings people together for a powerful national conversation about the growing impacts…
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ACTION AT ORIGIN AGM: Energy debt going up as profits climb
Origin AGM action, Sydney, 15 October 2025 Sweltering Cities is part of the Stop the Bill Shock campaign alongside our partners the Antipoverty Centre and Parents for Climate. The Stop the Bill Shock coalition was outside the Origin AGM in Sydney on Oct 15 to call for the company to: Origin Energy has reported more…
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Barbara, a Perth local, reflects on living and planning in the heat
As Perth braces for another long summer, many of us are already thinking about how to stay cool. At Sweltering Cities, we’re hearing from people across WA who are noticing how much harder it’s getting to escape the heat. For Barbara Pedersen, a retired environmental planner living in inner-city Perth, the summer heat is…
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NSW Budget analysis and Net Zero Commission open for comments: Share your thoughts on extreme heat initiatives!
Scroll down for our hot takeaways from the 2025/26 NSW Budget (spoiler: we aren’t thrilled). The Net Zero Commission provides independent expert advice to the NSW Government in transitioning to a net zero economy. The commission is responsible for reviewing the climate actions currently being undertaken by the NSW Government and identifying recommendations to make…
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Lisa’s summer in a new build was even hotter than her old building.
Every day, community members share their heat stories with us, and generously allow us to share them with you. Hearing these stories empowers others to join us to work towards safer, cooler communities for all. We spoke to Lisa who has been living in a new public housing build this past summer on the NSW…
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Parramatta community Cool Walk: Witnessing the Urban Heat Island Effect
As part of Climate Action Week, Sweltering Cities ran our first community Cool Walk in Sydney. Our Cool Walk took place in Parramatta. We walked through, answered questions, and did some temperature monitoring around local hot spots that exacerbate the heat, as well as cool spots that provide us with much-needed relief on hot days. …
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Peter, a Fairfield local, shares his Summer Story with us
Peter took part in our 2024 Summer Survey. We spoke to him this summer about his recent experiences with hot weather. Peter is a retiree– he worked in customer service at IKEA for 14 years!– and has been living in Fairfield for 5 years now. Peter shares that for him, the most difficult part of…
