Cooling L.A.
Keeping Angelenos safe and cool with the ShadeLA movement—an L.A.-wide effort to add shade everywhere people live, work, and gather.
USC Launched 2025
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Impact
More shade means more comfortable afternoons at the park, safer playgrounds for kids, and daily walks that don’t leave people drenched in sweat. And with Los Angeles preparing to host the World Cup, Super Bowl, and the Olympic and Paralympic Games, the stakes are even higher. ShadeLA is about transforming this moment into a legacy: giving Angelenos and visitors more space to enjoy their neighborhoods—through trees, awnings, umbrellas, and more—and turning shade into a part of daily life.
66 % drop in heat-related ER visits with more shade
70 °F drop in the “felt” temperature in shaded areas
Challenge
Heatwaves are getting longer and hotter—parts of L.A. could be 95°F+ three months per year by 2050–but L.A.’s streets, parks, and public spaces weren’t built for this. During the hottest time of day, only about 21% of the county is shaded—and 75% of bus stops don’t have any shade at all. Heat is already the deadliest weather event in the US. Without enough shade, being outside isn’t just uncomfortable—it’s dangerous.
Our Plan
We launched ShadeLA to help L.A. turn shade into an essential part of urban design. Alongside climate researchers, ShadeLA is mapping where shade will have the biggest impact and what types of shade work best—from canopies to trees. Then we’re partnering with Angelenos, businesses, nonprofits, schools, and public agencies to make it happen.
Project Goals
Help people create more shade
We created simple resources to help locals, businesses, and schools add shade wherever they are.
Protect shade long-term
Our shade care guides will help residents and leaders make sure their shade lasts—whether it’s an awning, tree, or umbrella.
Develop a shade tracker
This lets us monitor local impact and make sure our work is making a real difference for people, especially in heat-vulnerable communities.
Approach
We’re creating new decision-making tools, building innovative shade structures, streamlining permitting processes, and leading a movement that motivates all Angelenos to take action and bring more shade to our communities.
Planning
Design
Policy
Public Engagement
Recent Updates
Push to save trees damaged by the Eaton Fire
Ahead of Olympics, ShadeLA to expand shade across city
Can we turn our water infrastructure into a climate solution?
New team will brainstorm ways to provide more shade in L.A. ahead of major events
Related Projects
- USC
Simplifying climate change language
Simplifying how experts and academics talk about climate change, so the public can understand threats facing their communities—and respond.
- USC
Making sense of climate change graphics
Assessing how well the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) graphics are understood by the policymakers who rely on them—so that critical science can be clearer, more usable, and more actionable.
- USC
Greening L.A.’s hottest streets
Bringing more trees, shade, and fresh air to L.A. by mapping where, what kind, and how many trees to plant for the biggest impact.