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The New Platform Helps Cities Assess the Vulnerability to Climate Change and Urban Heat Islands
Do you know if there are urban heat islands in your city? Where the “hot spots” are and where the cooler zones in the urban environment are? Do vulnerable social groups, such as senior citizens or people with lower incomes, live in warmer parts of the city? How many local self-governments in Serbia have the capacity for long-term monitoring and response to the intensity of urban heat islands?
The answers to these and many other questions can now be found thanks to a new digital platform that allows cities to assess their own vulnerability to the effects of climate change, with a special focus on the urban heat islands phenomenon. This tool is intended for decision makers, urban planners, researchers, and citizens who want to understand the spatial and social challenges related to rising temperatures in cities better. The platform was created as part of the “Be Ready” project and is available at the link BE READY UHI.
In order to address the need for effective ways to assess and mitigate the effects of urban heat islands (UHIs), partners on the Be Ready project have developed a methodology for self-assessing the risks and vulnerabilities of cities. The detailed methodology is available on the official website of the Be Ready project.
This platform represents a simplified version of the methodology, adapted for use in different cities, regardless of the level of data availability. The goal of the UHI online assessment platform is to support local authorities and other relevant actors in assessing the degree of their vulnerability to urban heat island effects, identifying vulnerable groups, recognizing opportunities to improve existing policies and practices, as well as assessing their ability to adapt and prepare for climate challenges.
Through an intuitive interface and available data, the platform allows users to identify the most vulnerable parts of the city, analyze temperature distribution, as well as to plan and monitor the effectiveness of climate change adaptation measures. This initiative represents an important step towards improving local resilience and better planning for sustainable urban development.