Does your city neighborhood feel hotter in the summer than nearby areas outside of the city? What does your neighborhood sound like? How might these have an impact on your mental and physical health?

Observe your surroundings! To participate, do one or more of the following:

• Download the NoiseScore app and take a sound measurement from your community, backyard or porch, or from inside your home near an open window.
  • The NoiseScore app is a part of Noise and the City -- a Boston-based effort to monitor community noise, examine its impact on human health, and to provide free, accessible, and dynamic advocacy tools, data, and resources to aid communities in understanding and addressing their specific noise issues.
• Reflect on the Urban Heat Island effect. Think about a hot summer day in your neighborhood -- where does it feel hottest, and where might you go to get cool (outside)? How do different materials make a difference in heat and comfort, like trees vs. bright sun overhead and grass vs. asphalt underfoot.
  • If it’s a hot, sunny day, you could visit two locations in your neighborhood to feel the difference: a shady, green area like a park or your backyard, and contrast it to a space covered with asphalt or concrete, like a parking lot. You can even bring an outdoor thermometer to measure the difference if you have one.