Urban heat solutions

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Introduction

During heat waves, the highest temperatures are often found in urbanized areas. By 2070, 3.5 billion people will be heavily affected by heat, 1.6 billion of whom will live in urban areas (Chi Xu et al. 2020). Rising temperatures can negatively impact vulnerable people, workers, infrastructure and even GDP.

As the world warms, there is an urgent need to find ways to prevent the worse. Heat is a growing global challenge for communities large and small, across every development context, and requires collaboration amongst a wide array of disciplines and topic areas. In addition, newly sweltering countries can learn from heat-hardy ones about ways to stay cool.

This collection compiles stories from around the world on how to reduce heatwave risk.

Hazards
Heatwave
Themes
Urban risk and planning

Knowledge base

Heatwave, Bangladesh, 30 April 2024
Update

How can the world reduce deaths from extreme heat?

The world will need to adapt to increased temperatures. What can societies do to save lives?
Our World in Data (OWID)
Blurry image of a sunny urban skyline
Research briefs

Rural belts around cities can reduce urban temperatures by over 0.5°C

The key to cooling ‘urban heat islands’ may lie in the countryside, according to a new study from scientists at the University of Surrey's Global Centre for Clean Air Research (GCARE) and Southeast University (China).
The University Of Surrey
Green city with multiple green roofs
Update

Cool roofs are best at beating cities’ heat

Painting roofs white or covering them with a reflective coating would be more effective at cooling cities like London than vegetation-covered “green roofs,” street-level vegetation or solar panels, finds a new study led by UCL researchers.
University College London
Digital thermometer showing a high temperature in a town
Research briefs

New fabric makes urban heat islands more bearable

With applications in clothing, construction and food storage, the new textile reduces heat from both the sun and thermal radiation from nearby buildings.
University of Chicago
Green roof at the WIPO headquarters building
Update

Nature-Based Solutions in schools: a green way to adapt buildings to climate change in Solana de los Barros, Extremadura (Spain)

Different types of green roofs, green facades, permeable paving and ventilation systems have been tested in a school building of Spain to address increasing temperatures and water scarcity.
Climate-ADAPT
Update

This L.A. neighborhood's 'cool pavements' help it beat the intense heat

A solar-reflective coating used in the community of Pacoima could be a playbook to offer relief to other incredibly warm — and often working-class — California neighborhoods.
NBC News
An aerial view of the Mai Po nature reserve beside Shenzen City, China
Research briefs

Wetlands, parks and even botanical gardens among the best ways to cool cities during heatwaves

Botanical gardens are not just beautiful – they can cool the city air by 5°C during heatwaves, according to the most comprehensive review of its kind led by the University of Surrey. Parks and wetlands have a similar effect.
The University Of Surrey
Shade produced by trees in a city street in southern France
Update

We need urban trees more than ever – here’s how to save them from extreme heat

Researchers studied the effects of extreme heat on urban trees in Western Sydney during the record-breaking summer of 2019–20. They reported concerns and solutions for the survival of both native Australian and exotic tree species in urban forest.
Conversation Media Group, the
Urban landscape in Singapore
Update

Cool solutions for a hotter climate: Tackling urban heat island effect with innovation

Cities worldwide are grappling with the adverse effects of Urban Heat Island (UHI), intensified by rising global temperatures from climate change. The consequences of the UHI effect extend far beyond discomfort.
World Bank, the
Update

As the Earth gets hotter, can our cities get cooler?

At the global scale, people in developing countries, particularly in South Asia, Africa and East Asia, who have contributed the least to cause climate change and do not have the resources to adapt are expected to have their health impacted the most.
World Resources Institute

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