Basilicata turns to air-conditioning as Italy's heat becomes relentless

Record-breaking temperatures across the continent are pushing Italian households and businesses to install air-conditioning units in growing numbers, according to The New York Times. The shift marks a notable change for a country where many residents long resisted cooling systems, viewing them as unnecessary or even unhealthy. Italy, like much of southern Europe, has seen summers grow hotter and longer in recent years, and the pressure on homes without cooling has become acute.

The adoption of air-conditioning is an uneven process in a country where the infrastructure of the north differs sharply from the south. In Basilicata, one of Italy's poorest and most sparsely populated regions, the spread of cooling units has been slower than in the industrial north. But the same heat that has pushed Milan and Rome toward widespread installation is now reaching the region's hill towns and the Sassi of Matera, where stone homes that once offered natural insulation now trap heat during prolonged heatwaves.

The New York Times reports that Italy's resistance to air-conditioning has eroded as temperatures have climbed. For families in the deep south, the cost of purchasing and running units is a significant burden, yet the alternative — enduring indoor temperatures that rival the outdoors — has become harder to justify. The trend is visible in the growing number of rooftop units and window installations appearing across towns like Potenza and Matera.