Protecting Farmworkers as Temperatures Rise With Climate Change

California’s long, hot summers can be deadly for people who make their living laboring in the sun. The state’s Mediterranean climate is great for the 400 different types of commodities grown, but hard on the humans who harvest them. And climate change is making matters worse. Watch how UC Davis is working with growers and workers to prevent heat illness.

#Farming | #Heat | #Safety | #UCDavis | #Education

Video Description: The video opens with shots of brilliant green rows stretching into distant sand dunes, farmers weeding through leaves, picking melons, and handling machinery. Rigoberto Robles Garcia outlines how the heat is impacting the farmworkers who are harvesting fruits and vegetables. Joe Del Bosque, President of Del Bosque Farms, explains how he needs a great number of workers to pick the crops. Clips display people hauling melons onto a long white table, moving crates, walking down dusty roads, and crouching over fruits. Aerial shots of dark green fields display white text that says: “UC Davis is working with farmers to teach workers how to safely work in the heat.” Teresa Andrews, Education Specialist at UC Davis Western Center for Agricultural Health and Safety and Environmental Health, describes the cautionary methods she relays to farmer workers. A montage of farmworkers drinking water, resting in wireframe sheds, and sorting fruits plays as the video comes to a close.