Heat doesn’t settle randomly. It moves toward places where the system expects quiet endurance — and away from places where resistance or accountability would be inconvenient.
This is why minority staff often feel harm first, most intensely and most consistently.
It’s not about visibility or identity alone. It’s about where the system trusts harm to go unnoticed.
Where Heat Settles First
These are the sites where heat consistently lands when boundary membranes weaken.
The Four Primary Heat Sites
Each site absorbs heat differently, but the pattern is always systemic — never personal.
Frontline Roles
- The first to feel policy failures
- Expected to absorb confusion and conflict
- Carry emotional fallout from decisions made above them
Bridge Roles
- Expected to translate between cultures or teams
- Carry the emotional work of “keeping things smooth”
- Often used as informal mediators without power
Identity-Holding Roles
- Expected to represent or educate “their” group
- Carry the burden of “showing inclusion works here”
- Experience scrutiny without protection
Containment Roles
- Take on emotional labour to keep a team functioning
- Are asked to “stay calm,” “be understanding,” or “hold space”
- Absorb interpersonal tension to prevent escalation
Where This Leads
Once you understand where heat lands, the next step is understanding how it travels. Heat never stays still — it moves through pathways that can be traced.
Our next page explores these: Thermal Conductivity Pathways.
Heat doesn’t settle by accident. It lands where the system assumes silence.