National climate coalition stops in Macon to highlight impacts of extreme weather

The hot air steamed a group of local officials and community members shaded under tents outside the Tubman Museum in downtown Macon. Many were sweating, fanning themselves and drinking water.

The weather was fitting as officials sought to raise awareness for the risks of extreme heat and the need for equitable environmental solutions at the press conference Thursday, which was organized by the Climate Action Campaign.

Middle Georgia and most of the state faced heat advisories last week, with the heat index exceeding 100 degrees on some days, according to the National Weather Service.

East Macon resident and radio talk show host Tia Lockhart said her normal walk at Jefferson Long Park became much more arduous. Being six months into her pregnancy means she has to take her walks at night or drive up to Amerson River Park where there is more shade.

But not everyone is able to adapt their routines  — or even have access to clean water — to stay safe in the heat, she said.

“This is a life and death situation that speaks more than just discomfort,” she said to a dozen people outside the museum.

Asha Ellen, executive director of the Keep Macon-Bibb Beautiful Commission, spoke to the handful of attendees about the nonprofit’s efforts in planting trees to build tree canopies and provide shade and respite to combat the “urban heat island effect,” the phenomenon where urban areas are becoming hotter than their surrounding rural counterparts.

Lockhart said it’s especially important for green space and tree canopies to be made available to historically disinvested and marginalized communities, particularly Black communities.

In 2024, Keep Macon-Bibb Beautiful spent $100,000 planting trees and increasing canopy coverage in marginalized communities like Greenwood Bottom and Fort Hill, Ellen said.

She said Keep Macon-Bibb Beautiful was able to plant 450 trees under the Trees Across Georgia grant, sourced from federal funds and the Georgia Forestry Commission. However, the funds are jeopardized under the threat of the Trump administration’s decisions to roll back funding from the Inflation Reduction Act.

“Because those funds are at risk, it will disrupt a lot of the plans and initiatives, not just here in Macon-Bibb, but throughout our country as it pertains to investing in tree canopies particularly in marginalized communities,” Ellen said.

The national coalition is currently on a nationwide “extreme weather emergency tour” to learn about how climate is affecting local communities.

Satchel Tsai, the coalition’s program manager, said Macon was added to the tour because of the high number of extreme heat days it experiences along with the disparity in tree cover and exposure to heat in historically Black neighborhoods and low income communities. 

Tsai said the coalition is advocating for the full funding of all federal agencies working on environmental and climate protection as well as extreme weather emergency response and preparedness.

“People think about climate as this big abstract thing,” Tsai said.  “It’s kind of hard to see it but when you’re somewhere locally seeing the impacts, that’s really powerful.”