Educating the Community About Urban Heat & Resilience Through Cool the City

Apr 1

Since launching on Earth Day 2025, Southside ReLeaf’s Cool the City campaign has connected Richmond residents with accessible, community-centered education about extreme heat, flooding, resilience, and environmental issues. Developed in collaboration with local partners, the campaign uses creative storytelling, multilingual outreach, public art, and large-scale communications efforts to help residents better understand how climate impacts affect neighborhoods differently — and how communities can work together to create healthier, cooler, and more resilient cities.

The campaign has reached residents through a wide-ranging public education and media effort designed to make climate information more visible and accessible across Richmond. This work has included the installation of a public mural at 411 N 1st Street by Richmond artist Paris Allen, educational social media campaigns, public transit advertising, professional campaign videos, interviews with community leaders, and educational events like community forums and outdoor learning classrooms. The campaign also launched a dedicated website and social media channels to encourage ongoing engagement with greening and resilience opportunities. Through earned media coverage and strategic outreach, Cool the City has continued to elevate conversations around urban heat, flooding, and environmental justice while building long-term community support for resilience initiatives throughout Richmond.

Impact

Launched a paid media campaign featuring bus shelter ads, billboards, social media ads, and web-based outreach in targeted areas across Richmond in collaboration with Ryano Graphics.
Launched a dedicated Cool the City website (coolthecity.com) and social media channels on Instagram (@coolthecity) and Facebook (@coolthecityrva) to support ongoing efforts to educate and engage the community in cooling the city.
Produced professional campaign videos and community leader interviews to support environmental education and civic engagement.
Earned nine local media placements across outlets, including the Virginia Mercury, VPM, WTVR, Virginia This Morning, Richmond Times-Dispatch, and WRIC.
Reached more than 200 community members during the campaign’s Earth Day 2025 launch celebration.
Created a public mural at 411 N 1st Street focused on community care, sustainability, and collective action
Expanded public awareness of urban heat, flooding, and environmental issues through creative storytelling and multimedia outreach
Built long-term visibility and public support for resilience initiatives across Richmond.