During extreme weather events like heat waves or wildfire smoke events, it’s crucial to engage with building tenants to ensure their safety and well-being. In the case of the deadly heat wave that occurred in Portland in 2022, a recent study found many public housing residents ignored messages about the dangers of the heat wave.
“…residents were not particularly enticed by receiving heat alerts; at least, this was not a primary reason for enrolling in the study. This is supported by the fact that, during sensor installation and setup, multiple residents opted out of receiving text or email alerts.”
Researchers felt that a keen sense of community would increase the level of safety during these events. And in that realm, there was good news. Many tenants who joined the study said they did so in hopes it would benefit all the tenants.
In one news article, tenants complained, “I don’t need an alert to tell me when it’s hot outside.” Building trust and sending the right information at the right time is especially important for vulnerable populations, like those in public housing. They often face extra barriers to access resources or information. Also, previous traumas may make it ever harder to make good decisions in the moment. Therefore, we need to take a trauma-informed approach.
BuildingLens is a vital building management platform. It can help property managers and landlords engage with tenants during wildfire smoke events. Our leadership is from a disadvantaged community. Using that lived experience, we plan to make sure BuildingLens can be used to support tenant engagement in the following ways:
1. Engage with Tenants of Public Housing. As we roll out our service, we will beta test messages in cooperation with people in public housing. We are sure that AirLens will make a notable helpful impact on tenant health. This is how we will build the trust needed to engage in meaningful ways with them.
2. Send Automated Alerts. BuildingLens lets property managers send automated alerts to tenants. This will be via email, text message, or in-app notification. Tenants can customize these alerts to get germane facts about the wildfire smoke event. This includes updates on air quality, safety measures, and any other important things that tenants need to know.
3. Respond to Tenant Feedback. BuildingLens will actively seek feedback from our beta testers to learn how they are interpreting our messages. From there, we’ll re-write the messages to be more accessible. We’ll always welcome feedback from tenants in buildings using our service over time, too.
4. Provide Real-Time Information. BuildingLens provides real-time information about air quality and other relevant data that can be used to inform tenants about the situation. This data needs to be shared in a culturally relevant way to make it easy for tenants to access and understand. Once we do that, it can be displayed on a BuildingLens dashboard online or in the app or shared via texts and auto calls.
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5. Ease Communication between Tenants and Property Managers. BuildingLens includes a communication module that allows tenants to easily communicate with their property manager or landlord. This can be especially useful during wildfire smoke events, as it enables tenants to ask questions, request aid, or give feedback on the situation.
6. Provide Resources. BuildingLens can be used to provide tenants with access to relevant resources, such as information about air filters, tips for reducing exposure to smoke, and other resources that can help tenants protect themselves and their homes.
When we work with disadvantaged communities, we need to go beyond simply checking a box to say that we helped people during extreme weather events. Instead, we should prioritize communication, trust, and community building. This needs to be part of an ongoing effort to build stronger, more resilient communities. BuildingLens can help build that trust between property managers and landlords.