The Rise of Racism in the United States

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Racial inequalities were built into cities across the US. Post-lavery as people of color began to move around, they were placed into certain areas and it was government-sanctioned racism. Then the next thing that happened is the development of the freeways, which landed right in the middle of communities of color and divided them. A great example is the Tremé community in New Orleans when they dropped I-10 and it replaced the longest stand of oak trees in North America.

As the planet warms, and intense heatwaves become the norm, our urban environments need a radical rethink to keep them habitable. So what do we want the cities of the future to look like? In the first of our special series of episodes looking at what a future world could look like, Madeleine Finlay speaks to author and historian Ben Wilson, Prof Jessica Davies and Prof Diane Jones Allen about how to create cities that are fairer, greener and more self-reliant.. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/sciencepod