Planning for Rural Heat Resilience
PAS Memo 130
By Ladd Keith, Sara Meerow, Anne-Lise Boyer, Minwoo Ahn
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Heat is the leading cause of weather-related mortality in the United States. More than 700 Americans die each year from heat-related causes — more than the combined annual deaths from hurricanes, floods, and tornadoes — with 2023 seeing a record 2,335 U.S. heat-related deaths.
Heat is often presented as an urban problem, and heat resilience planning efforts thus far have largely focused on urban areas. But rural and small communities are also severely impacted by extreme heat. Though this urban focus has generated important advances, attention to heat risks, vulnerabilities, and planning capacity in rural communities has lagged. As heat risks intensify, rural and small communities need planning approaches that account for more dispersed populations, limited infrastructure, and constrained local capacities.
This PAS Memo addresses this gap by examining how rural communities can increase their resilience to extreme heat. It begins by discussing factors that exacerbate the impacts of extreme heat on rural communities. It then outlines the seven principles of the heat resilience planning framework and details strategies for heat mitigation (reducing heat in built environments) and heat management (preparing for and responding to heat events) tailored for rural and small-town contexts. Finally, the article proposes action steps for planners to increase heat resilience in rural and small communities.
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About the Authors
Ladd Keith
Ladd Keith, PhD, is an associate professor in the School of Landscape Architecture and Planning, director of the Heat Resilience Initiative, associate research professor at the Udall Center for Studies in Public Policy, and distinguished scholar at the University of Arizona. His transdisciplinary research focuses on heat planning, policy, and governance to help increase the heat resilience of communities, regions, and nations across the world.
Sara Meerow
Sara Meerow, PhD, is currently an associate professor in the School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning at Arizona State University and will be transitioning in Fall 2026 to the University of Colorado Boulder. Her work focuses on urban resilience, climate change adaptation governance with a focus on heat and flooding, and green infrastructure planning.
Anne-Lise Boyer
Anne-Lise Boyer, PhD, is an assistant research professor in the School of Landscape Architecture and Planning at the University of Arizona. Her research examines climate adaptation, with an emphasis on water conservation strategies and extreme heat resilience across urban and rural landscapes. She currently contributes to the Climate Assessment for the Southwest (CLIMAS), a NOAA RISA initiative, where her work focuses on rural, tribal, and border communities.
Minwoo Ahn
Minwoo Ahn, PhD, is currently a postdoctoral research associate in the School of Landscape Architecture and Planning and in Climate Assessment for the Southwest at the University of Arizona. He will be transitioning in Fall 2026 to the College of Charleston as assistant professor of environmental policy and politics at the Department of Political Science. His research focuses on environmental policy, heat governance, water governance, climate change adaptation, and commons.