How Summer Camp Offers Relief from the Heat
By: Molly Skelly
September 8, 2025
In the depths of Canadian winter, when days are short and the streets are buried in snow, it's natural to long for the warmth of summer. When longer days finally arrive, often bypassing spring entirely, we experience more than just the sunshine we were craving. The first heatwave hits earlier each year, with temperatures remaining above normal for months on end. As global temperatures continue to rise, with Toronto’s July 2025 daily temperature highs averaging 27 degrees (AccuWeather, 2025), summer is no longer just a season of fun and freedom for children. It has become a period of risk, especially for kids growing up in densely populated, low-income urban neighbourhoods. Sweltering streets, stifling apartments, limited access to air conditioning and a lack of green space, are turning summers into a physical and mental health hazard for many families. Overnight summer camps are emerging as more than just a cherished tradition, they are becoming a lifeline to beat the urban heat.
Global warming is heating up our cities. But this isn’t happening equally. Low-income neighbourhoods often have less green space, fewer trees and more concrete, making these areas significantly warmer in a summer heat wave. In 2022, Radio Canada researchers found that the lower the average resident's income in a given neighbourhood in Canada, the hotter the area was. For children living in these areas, the unrelenting heat can lead to higher rates of heat-related illness, asthma and disrupted sleep. But the effects go beyond the physical. Emotionally and developmentally, spending a summer trapped in stifling conditions can take a serious toll. Summer was once a season of exploration, play and growth. Now, for many kids, it’s something to endure.
Overnight summer camp offers an increasingly critical escape. A chance to run freely in the woods, swim in cool lakes, sleep comfortably and simply breathe cleaner air. While we’ve long known that camp fosters confidence, resilience and independence, in the face of record-breaking heat waves, it has taken on a new role: giving kids a break from the physical and emotional toll of life in an overheated city.
At camp, kids build resilience in nature, not just against it. They gain independence, experience joy and learn cooperation, which are harder to come by when overtired and overheated in an urban setting. Camp provides a healthy balance of routine and play, and opens doors to friendships, mentorship and support systems that last well beyond the summer months.
Taking a break from everything at home, electronics, family and friends. It feels like an escape and it lets me immerse myself into nature. - Amici Camper, Sparrow Lake Camp, 13
Amici Children’s Camp Charity ensures that camp remains equitable for all, especially for children from low-income families who need it most. Over 70% of Amici campers live in cities across Ontario, far from the lakes, forests and open spaces that define the camp experience. By removing financial barriers, Amici helps bridge that gap, ensuring that every child has the chance to experience the magic, relief and transformation that summer camp can offer.
Cooling down urban spaces is a complex and multifaceted problem. But a safe, immersive experience in nature can make all the difference to a child, while also fostering the development of young stewards of the Earth. Supporting access to overnight summer camp for all children is an actionable step in climate justice. Because when the city heats up, every child deserves a place to cool down, relax, have fun and just be a kid.
AccuWeather. (2025, July). Toronto, Ontario weather forecast. AccuWeather. https://www.accuweather.com/en/ca/toronto
Radio-Canada. (2022). Ils sont venus, ils sont tous là : La chaleur, les villes, les inégalités et le changement climatique. https://ici.radio-canada.ca/info/2022/07/ilots-chaleur-villes-inegalites-injustice-changements-climatiques/en
