We’ve been talking with locals about extreme weather - and again and again, heat comes up.

People tell us about the toll it’s taking on their bodies and daily lives. One local shared a story from a power outage:
“After the third night of really hot nights, my body was just done. I felt so sick I couldn’t eat, and I was crying.”

Others say the heat itself is changing:
“The level of humidity we’re experiencing in Townsville is extreme now compared to when I first arrived.”

And even lifelong locals are struggling:
“I’ve been fine living up here all these years, but the last five years the heat has been really challenging - and that’s confronting.”

Heat is already harming our community. Yet in Queensland, extreme heat still isn’t treated as a natural hazard in planning laws.

That needs to change. We are tough up here, but there is no need to suffer. 

We’re calling on the Queensland Government to recognise extreme heat as a natural hazard - just like floods, fires and cyclones - and to plan our towns with shade, green spaces and cooling in mind.

Add your name to the petition here.

And please share your own heat story in the comments under the petition. Your experience helps show decision-makers why action can’t wait.