Social infrastructure as a Public Health Imperative

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Neighborhoods with high death rates in the Chicago heatwave had a depleted appearance and lacked strong community organizations and viable public spaces.
The neighborhoods with better outcomes had more community institutions and resources available to them.
Residents in neighborhoods with strong social infrastructure were more likely to survive the heatwave.
The difference in death rates between neighborhoods was significant, with depleted neighborhoods resulting in a 10 times higher likelihood of death during the heatwave.

Coffee shops, churches, libraries, and concert venues are all shared spaces where mingling can take place. Yet the hustle and bustle of modern social life can pose challenges to relationship-building—even in spaces designed for exactly that.

In this episode of How to Talk to People, we analyze how American efficiency culture holds us back from connecting in public, whether social spaces create a culture of interaction, and what it takes to actively participate in a community.

Hosted by Julie Beck, produced by Rebecca Rashid, edited by Jocelyn Frank and Claudine Ebeid. Managing editor is Andrea Valdez. Fact-check by Ena Alvarado, and engineering by Rob Smierciak. Special thanks to AC Valdez. Music by Alexandra Woodward (“A Little Tip”), Arthur Benson (“Charmed Encounter,” “She Is Whimsical,” “Organized Chaos”), Gavin Luke (“Nadir”), Ryan James Carr (“Botanist Boogie Breakdown”), Tellsonic (“The Whistle Funk”), Dust Follows (“Willet”), Auxjack (“Mellow Soul”).

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