How to stay safe and thrive in the summer heat – Western Sydney University experts available for comment

As temperatures rise and summer approaches, Western Sydney University experts are available to provide insights on how heat impacts our health, homes, and communities. From practical tips for keeping babies safe during heatwaves, to understanding food safety in warm conditions, and exploring the broader social, economic, and environmental challenges of extreme heat, our specialists can offer informed commentary and advice.

Adjunct Associate Professor Karleen Gribble, School of Nursing and Midwifery

Adjunct Associate Professor Gribble is a world-leading researcher on infants and young children in emergencies and has been involved in research, policy development and training in this area since 2006. She is the Project lead on the Australian Breastfeeding Association’s Community Protection for Infants and Young Children in Bushfires Project

Babies are amongst those who are more vulnerable in heat waves. They make more internal heat and sweat less than others. They rely on adults to keep them cool and hydrated. Parents and caregivers can prepare ahead for heat waves by planning where they will be on hot days. This may be at home or a friend or family member’s place where they have air-conditioning or at a local shopping centre or library. Avoiding going out in the heat of the day, can also help to keep baby cool. Be aware that babies may want to feed more frequently and have smaller feeds whether they are breastfed or formula fed. There are some don’ts to follow as well. Don’t cover your baby’s pram with a dry cloth as the temperature will increase. Don’t give your young baby water alone to drink, their kidneys are not mature, and it can make them very ill. 

For further insights, read Adjunct Associate Professor Gribble’s co-authored piece on The Conversation titled -  5 expert tips on how to look after your baby in a heatwave.

Associate Professor Vincent Ho, School of Medicine

Associate Professor Vincent Ho is a practicing gastroenterologist and leads a Translational Gastroenterology Research program at the School of Medicine, Western Sydney University focusing on basic science and clinical research in the gut. He has a strong passion in education of the science of the gut to health discipline audiences as well as the general public. Vincent is the gastroenterology education content convenor for the School of Medicine, has written extensively for The Conversation (over 9.5 million views) and has been interviewed on radio, television and newspapers.  

“It’s approaching the summer holidays and there will be a lot of food around household tables for the festive season. But it’s timely to remember that with all perishable foods - they should not be eaten if left out for over 4 hours otherwise there is a real risk of developing foodborne gastroenteritis. Temperature plays a very important role, as bacteria flourish in a ‘danger zone’ between 5 and 60 degrees Celsius. At-risk foods can be hard to spot, as the bacteria responsible for the majority of cases of food poisoning don’t change the appearance, smell or taste of food. Salmonella is one such bacteria and in the warm summer heat can double its population every 20 minutes. This means that a thin slice of egg with 100 Salmonella bacteria at 8am could contain just over 26 million bacteria by 2pm that same day.”

Associate Professor Emma Power, School of Social Science

Associate Professor Power’s research envisions a world of more caring and just cities, investigating how the capacity of people to meet their needs for care and to live a good life can be better supported within cities and through the broader housing and welfare systems. My work is motivated by an interest in what makes cities liveable and is driven with concerns about the implications of growing urban and housing inequity, the residualisation of social welfare systems in western liberal welfare states and urban liveability in changing climates.

“Heat in Western Sydney is a care crisis. Western Sydney’s summer heat lands hardest on people already stretched by the cost-of-living crisis. Those on low or no incomes, including people experiencing unemployment, single-parent families, older renters, people with disability reliant on the disability support pension and refugees and asylum seekers, are more likely to be living in substandard, poorly insulated housing and simply can’t afford to run air-conditioning through extreme heat.”

“These aren’t individual ‘choices’, they’re structural conditions that put people at real risk. As a city, we need to take responsibility for ensuring everyone has access to safe, quality housing regardless of income or tenure, and to cool, welcoming public places where people can go when their homes can’t keep up. Urban liveability has to start from the recognition that keeping people safe in rising heat is a shared responsibility and an essential part of caring for our communities.”

Associate Professor Stephen Healy, School of Social Sciences 

Associate Professor Healy is a teacher of Geography and Urban Studies at Western Sydney University and a school-based member of the Institute for Culture and Society. He is an award-winning teacher and author whose research draws on Marxian, feminist, and psychoanalytic theory to explore processes of social transformation.  His current research includes a three-year co-led project on climate change adaptation in the context of social housing. This work investigates innovative strategies to enhance climate resilience in vulnerable housing communities.

“Once again, Western Sydney is likely to face a hot summer. For well-resourced households, the response is simple: close the door and turn on the air conditioning. But for thousands of people in social housing, air conditioning is often inaccessible or unaffordable. The United Nations identifies 29°C as the maximum safe indoor temperature, yet our research at Western Sydney University shows that many dwellings regularly exceed this threshold—and the same is likely true across much of Sydney’s private rental stock.” 

“We need to think more fully about urban design that maximises cooling by using natural and built environments, and by supporting forms of sociability and conviviality that allow people to stay cool in comfort. Thermal safety must be re-centred in the design and retrofit of Sydney’s housing. But climate readiness also requires drawing on the everyday knowledge of people who already know how to live with heat—indoors and outdoors—whether from other parts of the world or from earlier times before air-conditioning was the norm.”

Ian Wright, School of Science

 Associate Professor Wright teaches classes in water science and management, environmental planning and environmental regulation. He has been a water scientist for more than 30 years and now leads a small team that conducts high-impact and highly engaged research that addresses water resource sustainability issues. He has published research on the water quality and ecological impact of wildfires on streams and high conservation-value peat wetlands in the Blue Mountains area, including the Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Area.  

“Do you swim in a natural waterway to cool off, or perhaps to exercise? Or perhaps your friends or family do. If you are lucky, your swimming spot is regularly tested for water quality and the results are generally good. I'm happy to help you find and interpret any results. Also, please watch-out for storms and wet weather. We are now entering the summer stormy season. Heavy rain can trigger hazardous water quality and wet weather can add to this through sewage contamination of waterways. I would wait a few days after heavy rain before swimming. I remind people to use your senses, particularly your nose and eyes. If the water looks muddy, cloudy, frothy. Or if it smells 'off'. Your senses are suggesting it probably is best not to swim. And if in doubt, but you still really want to cool-off, perhaps jump in the water but do not put your head under the water!”

Dr Thomas Longden, Urban Transformations Research Centre

Dr Thomas Longden is a senior researcher at Western Sydney University's Urban Transformations Research Centre (UTRC). His work on temperature-related mortality and temperature-related energy insecurity has been published in leading international journals, including Nature Energy, and Climatic Change. 

“Heat is a silent killer that is often under-estimated. Under-reporting of heat-related mortality can be substantial, especially when individual death record data is used. Excess mortality studies can also vary greatly with some studies finding 6–18 times more cold-related than heat-related deaths for Australian cities. When using national data that was analysed using 6 different climate zones, only the coldest climate zone had more cold-related deaths. Estimates of cold-related deaths should not capture changes in mortality associated with monthly or seasonal variation or flu and pneumonia related deaths.”

“In most parts of Australia, heat is a more serious threat to health. The impacts of heat will be worse when access to energy is impacted by self-rationing or frequent disconnections associated with prepayment for electricity. Health, energy, and housing are interrelated and a deterioration in the quality of one factor may adversely impact another.”

For further insights and information into Dr Longden’s research read his researcher via Underestimating heat-related mortality—a comparison of excess mortality and death record studies for Australia and The Right to Power: Keeping First Nations' Communities on Prepayment Connected

Professor Sebastian Pfautsch, School of Social Sciences and Urban Transformations Research Centre 

Sebastian Pfautsch is a Professor of Urban Management and Planning at Western Sydney University. He is also the President of the Australasian Green Infrastructure Network (AGIN), the peak body of the green infrastructure sector in Australia and Aotearoa/New Zealand. By combining his knowledge of urban planning, material science, plant ecophysiology and climate change, he develops evidence-based solutions that help cities adapt to rising summer heat. His projects won multiple awards for innovation, sustainability and technology, and his high-quality research is documented in 150+ published works and is listed in the top 2% of scientists worldwide (Stanford University and Elsevier).

“The National Adaptation Plan (2025) states that the impacts of extreme heat on Australia’s cities are already severe and will worsen. The Australian National Urban Policy (2024) calls for the construction of sustainable and resilient places that “incorporate appropriate mitigation strategies” against heat.”

“National and international research demonstrates that urban blue-green infrastructure (UBGI) is the most effective and affordable cooling strategy for cities, whilst it also provides important co-benefits for the public and nature. There is currently no alternative cooling strategy to UBGI. For this reason, UBGI must be recognised as critical urban infrastructure and resourced accordingly. Based on federal policies, politicians, developers, and those who manage and live in cities have a shared responsibility: to protect and expand UBGI to reduce the impact of extreme heat. Our research informs this responsibility.” 

To arrange an interview, please contact the respective academic directly or email media@westernsydney.edu.au.

ENDS