Discussion: Emphasizing the Importance of Minimizing Heat-Related Deaths
In a world where climate change is becoming increasingly evident, the role of chief heat officers is becoming increasingly important. These experts are tasked with implementing key initiatives and strategies to make cities more resistant to extreme heat, focusing on three main pillars: awareness, preparedness, and urban redesign.
The United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) has a global chief heat officer named Eleni Myrivili. Myrivili believes there has been a significant shift in awareness about the threat of extreme heat in the last three to four years.
One of the key initiatives is the categorization of extreme heat, which allows for more effective communication of risks to policy makers and the public. In Athens, for instance, heatwaves were categorized into specific risk levels (yellow, orange, and red) linked to early-warning systems, policies, and actions to prevent heat-related deaths.
Chief heat officers personalize the need for creating policies to help people survive extreme heat. They translate scientific knowledge to policymakers and communities, persuading leaders and informing vulnerable populations about heat risks and safety behaviors.
Cities like Jacksonville provide access to cooling centers during heat waves, while Bridgeport, Connecticut, creates shaded pedestrian walkways with trees and reflective surfaces to decrease street-level temperatures. New York City distributes cooling kits including sunscreen and ice packs to shield outdoor workers from heat stress, and Phoenix, Arizona, is regarded as a "gold standard" with an entire office devoted to heat mitigation and statewide leadership.
However, these strategies must be tailored to local conditions and resources. Cities with different urban layouts, climate zones, or socioeconomic profiles will prioritize different combinations of measures. Singapore, for example, has created amazing knowledge and implemented incredible initiatives in relation to extreme heat.
Effective chief heat officers must be flexible, understanding both the needs of the most vulnerable and the cost-effectiveness of interventions. They advise city leadership on high-impact actions within often limited budgets. Using nature more cleverly within cities can be significantly cheaper than grey infrastructure, such as through tree planting, creating shaded "cool corridors," using reflective paints, and establishing cooling centers.
As world leaders gather for COP30, the message is clear: the importance of cities in climate change and adaptation efforts cannot be overstated. Cities are increasingly more present and part of the discussions about funding, about solutions in COP meetings. The dominance of the private car in public spaces has been limited to a large extent in many cities in Northern Europe, and summers have seen extraordinary heat-related events worldwide.
The article was originally published on Dialogue Earth under a Creative Commons license and is tagged with COP, infrastructure, UN, urban planning, climate, inequality, healthcare, urbanisation, climate risk, extreme weather, global warming, heatwaves. It is related to SDGs like Health (SDG 3), Infrastructure (SDG 9), Inequality (SDG 10), Cities (SDG 11), Peace (SDG 16), Partnerships (SDG 17). The importance of cities in decisions that are made about climate policy and climate financing is super crucial at COP30.
- The United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) has a global chief heat officer named Eleni Myrivili, who emphasizes the importance of climate policy in addressing climate change, especially in relation to extreme heat.
- Science plays a significant role in informing chief heat officers about the risks of climate change, allowing them to translate this knowledge into actionable strategies for policy makers and communities.
- In addition to implementing policies, chief heat officers must also focus on health-and-wellness, ensuring that initiatives are designed to protect the most vulnerable populations from the negative effects of extreme heat.
- The COP30 meetings provide a critical platform for city leaders to discuss climate change and adaptation efforts, with a particular emphasis on the role of cities in climate policy and climate financing decisions.
