Heat, Dust, and People

This fact sheet describes the ADAPTE project, which uses Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to analyze how the interaction of extreme temperatures and air pollution increases health risks and mortality in large Latin American cities.

• The ADAPTE project utilizes Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to provide city planners with data on how socio-economic and demographic vulnerabilities influence mortality risks across neighborhoods, facilitating the development of chemical weather forecasts and municipal responses to air pollution and climate hazards.
• In Mexico, Santiago, and Bogota, levels of fine dust particles (PM10) exceed World Health Organization (WHO) standards by 90%. Nitrous oxides (NOx) pollution in these same three cities exceed WHO standards by 73%, 38%, and 25%, respectively.
• Analysis of relative risk (RR) for respiratory mortality during the warm season showed the highest levels in Buenos Aires (RR: 1.03) and Mexico City (RR: 1.00). In Bogota, children exhibited a higher respiratory RR of 1.20 during the cold season.
• For cardiovascular mortality, the highest relative risks (RR: 1.01) during the warm season occurred in Mexico City and Buenos Aires. In Bogota, the cardiovascular RR was higher for the elderly during the cold season (RR: 1.00).
• Mapping of cardiovascular and respiratory mortality in Bogota indicates that these distributions do not follow the north-south gradient of education and wealth, suggesting that population age characteristics play a role in the relationship.

APA

Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (2010). Heat, Dust, and People. https://iai.int/admin/site/sites/default/files/uploads/2014/06/snapshot6_heat_dust_and_people_EN.pdf

Chicago

Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research. Heat, Dust, and People. 2010. https://iai.int/admin/site/sites/default/files/uploads/2014/06/snapshot6_heat_dust_and_people_EN.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research |title=Heat, Dust, and People |date=2010 |url=https://iai.int/admin/site/sites/default/files/uploads/2014/06/snapshot6_heat_dust_and_people_EN.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{interamericaninstituteforglobalchangeresearch2010heat, author = {{Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research}}, title = {{Heat, Dust, and People}}, institution = {Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research}, year = {2010}, url = {https://iai.int/admin/site/sites/default/files/uploads/2014/06/snapshot6_heat_dust_and_people_EN.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }