In a recent NPR story, sociologist Eric Klinenberg at New York University discusses how social relations within neighborhoods can affect survival rates during bouts of extreme weather. When we talk about environmental changes, we often talk about physical infrastructure and physical resources but we fail to consider how our social infrastructure, our relationships, contribute to our well-being and safety.

In the story, Klinenberg compares the death rates of adjacent neighborhoods during a the Chicago heatwave of 1995 despite their similarities in resources and demographics.

Listen to the full (but short) story here: Neighborhood Connections Key to Surviving a Crisis

To read more: an interview with Klinenberg and the UChicago Press, “Dying Alone: An Interview with Eric Klinenberg”