Palava City, a 5,000-acre experimental community northeast of Mumbai, hopes to provide a model for adapting to a climate-transformed world.
[...]
Keeping buildings cool with minimal energy is a priority for Palava's developers, who have continued to try different strategies since construction began.
Early apartments were built with smaller windows to reduce the amount of heat that could enter, Abdullah said. But when residents complained about the window size, he said, the developers responded by constructing apartments with larger windows set farther back into the building. This design provides shade and cuts the amount of direct heat hitting the glass. More recently, Abdullah said, they've been experimenting with glass treatments such as films that can be applied to windows to keep heat out.
[...]
Many of the development's public green spaces are situated to buffer against floodwaters. One major park features a bioswale, a grassy channel that helps control stormwater's velocity to prevent flooding. Rainwater is collected and stored in two quarries in case of shortages.
The community also has its own wastewater plants, and is able to treat and reuse all of its graywater - what drains from showers, tubs and sinks, as well as from washing machines - and blackwater, which comes from toilets.
[...]