Historical redlining policies have left a lasting imprint on the urban landscapes of many U.S. cities, shaping both their physical structure and environmental conditions. This study explores how these policies may continue to influence air temperatures in San Antonio, TX. Neighborhoods historically designated as redlined and those classified as “A-Best” by the Home Owners’ Loan Corporation (HOLC) were analyzed to examine possible thermal disparities linked to urban design and surface properties.

A GIS-based analysis was conducted to evaluate the urban characteristics of redlined and “A-Best” grades, focusing on features such as surface coverage, building density, building heights, green coverage, and zoning patterns. Based on the insights from this analysis, two models representing residential areas from each grade were developed. These models were simulated using ENVI-met, a high-resolution microclimate model, to analyze thermal conditions on a typical summer day, using meteorological data from San Antonio International Airport. The simulations revealed notable thermal differences between the two grades, with average air temperatures in the redlined grade exceeding those in the “A-Best” zone by up to 0.61 °C. Moreover, the standard deviation of temperatures, calculated relative to the average temperature in each grade, differed, with the redlined grade exceeding the “A-Best” grade by 0.26 °C. Overall, the results emphasize that the redlined grade, with limited green coverage and a higher proportion of impervious surfaces, consistently exhibited higher air temperatures, indicating potential thermal vulnerabilities in historically underserved neighborhoods.

This study contributes to broader discussions on environmental and social inequities by highlighting the potential impacts of historical urban policies on contemporary thermal environments.

This paper presents Senge’s systems thinking approach to filling in climate-induced health gaps by integrating technological, environmental, and social factors, particularly by mobilizing architectural research in disfranchised communities, into a sociotechnical systems (STS) framework for understanding and addressing the complex interplay between multiple interdisciplinary and inter-organizational approaches to the issue.

This paper draws on literature from public health, systems thinking, sociotechnical systems, and systems-oriented design to present a conceptual upstream sociotechnical systems model centered on community-based health hubs (CHH). The model presents the health-related decision-making structure, including the layers of empirical insights, such as in-situ heat and air pollution exposure, socioeconomic context, and the impact of external factors in the city (such as organizational structure). The social subsystem of the model comprises individuals, families, community councils, non-profit organizations, and stakeholders' needs for communication and coordination associated with health-related problems. The technical system includes the Internet of Things (IoT), which interfaces with smart sensing of homes and community environments to reflect on individual and collective health behavior.

The STS model, rooted in Senge’s core principles, provides a framework for addressing health disparities through reflexive, evolutionary, adaptive, and learnable processes. Personal mastery empowers individuals and communities to engage in lifelong learning and take informed action. Mental models challenge entrenched assumptions, creating space for innovation and transformation. Shared vision inspires collective commitment, aligning diverse stakeholders toward common goals. Finally, team learning promotes collaboration and dialogue, enabling the generation of new insights and the development of holistic solutions.

Building awards criteria often rely on abstract, empirical metrics to evaluate design excellence. Firms aiming to differentiate themselves around design, environmental sustainability, and other criteria often present the rationale behind design decisions using metrics drawn from awards programs like the AIA COTE Top Ten. Over the past decade, the building industry has recognized the importance of integrating contextual information into evaluation systems in a systematic way. This review summarizes the results of two complementary approaches to answering the research question: How can green and healthy building evaluation systems systematically integrate relevant context into the review process? This paper presents the results of a systematic review of the built environment and public health literature on the one hand and the results of a transdisciplinary architecture course that draws from students’ lived experience on the other. In both cases, the results support an approach to evaluating sustainable building design that 1) centers community priorities, 2) uses metrics that demonstrate co-benefits for both environmental and social outcomes, and 3) change the application process to lower the bar for submitting projects for consideration. This paper offers a substantive contribution to green and healthy building awards programs, many of which are interested in revising their metrics to more effectively integrate the social and environmental impacts of building design.