Communicating convergence research: home thermal security in manufactured housing communities

Keywords: thermal security, climate change, science communication, manufactured homes, extreme heat
Abstract Type: Poster Abstract

Abstract

Science communication is an increasingly important field because there are high barriers that continue to exclude the public from understanding science that deeply affects them. In this poster, I elaborate on a methodology for communicating complex convergence research to a wide variety of public audiences using the case study of extreme indoor heat risk in mobile home communities. Convergence research is the intentional collaboration of interdisciplinary researchers to tackle “wicked problems” – problems with social, political, financial, geographical, ecological, and psychological dimensions. Heat is the number one weather-related killer. Heat vulnerability assessments are an extraordinarily powerful tool for climatologists, public health and safety officials, architects, geographers, and economists. This collection of visual communication pieces advances scientific communication in the field of geography by incorporating known theoretical models to create media that impactfully transmit novel research. The dissemination of these deliverables to both the general public and affected citizens will improve public safety, improve scientific literacy, highlight injustice in communities, and build climate resilience. However, keeping these assessments in the academic world is a dangerous mistake. The stories of mobile homes residents and the barriers they face deserve to be told. Mobile homes are promised as a not inherently marginal form of housing but in reality, it is a nexus of social, financial, health, and environmental vulnerabilities.