Combating heat in cities: Operationalizing the urban heat agenda at the World Bank

This report stems from growing concern about the threat of extreme heat in urban settings and its adverse impacts on health. The team made use of the TIP-that is, the targeted, integrated, and prepared-framework, introduced in the recent "Healthy Cities" report (Lee et al. 2023), to help World Bank task teams explore pathways toward urban heat investments. This study gathered city responses and investigated existing World Bank initiatives to gain an understanding of what had already been done and the potential for future action. The main part of this report reviews the GPURL portfolio from 2012 to 2022, illustrating a spectrum of relevant heat interventions. Recommendations built on these findings highlight opportunities to operationalize urban heat in World Bank investments.

Main recommendations include:

• Expand targeted interventions: provide cooling shelters, distribute cooling equipment, and establish temporary cooling zones in high-risk neighborhoods.
• Increase integrated urban cooling: prioritize green infrastructure, shade provision, and cooling material in construction to reduce city temperatures and enhance resilience.
• Strengthen preparedness: develop early warning systems specifically for heatwaves, engage communities in awareness programs, and integrate heat vulnerability assessments into urban planning.