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The World Resources Institute introduces a framework for planning passive cooling infrastructure in cities using OpenUrban, a 1-meter resolution urban land-use and land-cover dataset. By combining OpenUrban with remotely sensed data on albedo, tree canopy, and temperature, the framework generates three implementation scenarios—technical, achievable, and program—for trees, cool roofs, reflective pavements, and shade structures. The tool is designed to be city-agnostic and low-burden, requiring no local data inputs and providing both area-wide potential indicators and spatial simulation maps to support policy and planning.

The document introduces an open-source method to model the Universal Thermal Climate Index (UTCI) at a 1-meter resolution using the SOLWEIG model and open-access data. This framework allows cities to assess baseline heat risks and simulate the cooling effects of interventions such as tree planting, shade structures, and cool surfaces. The method's accuracy was validated against LiDAR-supported models, showing a mean absolute error of 0.39°C.

The Joint Benefits Authority (JBA) is a framework for municipal governments to move away from siloed agency funding toward integrated capital planning. By creating an independent entity for collaboration, the JBA allows multiple city departments to pool resources, issue bonds, and leverage new investments to scale natural infrastructure. This approach aims to quantify undervalued co-benefits, such as reduced heat island effects and improved mental wellbeing, while advancing social equity by integrating community leadership directly into the project team for decision-making and long-term stewardship.

The Joint Benefits Authority (JBA) is a proposed governance and finance model based on the Joint Powers Authority (JPA) structure. It aims to overcome the challenges of siloed city departments and tight budgets by pooling resources and using advanced capital planning to deliver multi-purpose, nature-based infrastructure. The JBA focuses on capturing co-benefits, pioneering creative municipal financing, and advancing social equity by prioritizing underserved neighborhoods. The concept is currently being piloted in San Francisco through a partnership between the World Resources Institute, Encourage Capital, the Liquid Assets Project, and the San Francisco Public Utility Commission, with funding from the Kresge Foundation, Spring Point Partners, and the Moore Foundation.

The study concludes that human-induced climate change made the March-April 2022 heatwave in India and Pakistan approximately 30 times more likely and about 1
C hotter than in a pre-industrial climate. The event, defined as a 1-in-100-year occurrence in today's climate, caused at least 90 deaths, triggered glacial lake outburst floods in northern Pakistan, and led to significant wheat crop yield losses in India, prompting a wheat export ban. The researchers warn that at 2
C of global warming, such heatwaves will become an additional factor of 2-20 more likely and 0.5-1.5
C hotter. Vulnerability is highest among outdoor daily wage earners and urban poor in informal settlements, though the report notes that Heat Action Plans in India, now covering 130 cities, can effectively reduce mortality.

The study finds that the July 2019 heatwave in Western Europe was made significantly more likely and intense by human-induced climate change. In France and the Netherlands, the event would have been extremely improbable without human influence, with return periods exceeding 1,000 years. Across all analyzed locations, the heatwave was 1.5 to 3 °C hotter than it would have been in an unchanged climate. The analysis utilized a combination of observational data and eight climate model ensembles, noting that while models generally underestimate temperature trends and overestimate variability, they still simulate large probability changes.

The 2022 UK heatwave, which saw temperatures reach 40.3°C in Coningsby, was made at least 10 times more likely by human-caused climate change. Observational analysis indicates such an event would have been about 4°C cooler in pre-industrial times, though climate models systematically underestimate this trend. The event had significant impacts on human health, with projected excess mortality of over 840 people in England and Wales, and exposed critical vulnerabilities in UK infrastructure and urban planning.

The study concludes that anthropogenic climate change made the record-breaking early season heat in northern Argentina and Paraguay approximately 60 times more likely. The analysis focused on the 7-day average of daily maximum temperatures, finding that the 2022 event was an exceptional occurrence that would have been unlikely without human-induced warming. The report also highlights the region's high vulnerability due to urban heat island effects, informal settlements lacking electricity, and the timing of the heatwave before populations had acclimated to summer temperatures.

Trees reduce extreme heat through evapotranspiration and shade, mitigating the urban heat island effect and protecting vulnerable populations from climate-driven temperature increases.

To mitigate the impact of extreme weather and forest fires on biodiversity in Islamabad, WWF-Pakistan installed 500 artificial nest boxes across 33 sites. These boxes, designed to Cornell Lab standards, target species like woodpeckers and owls whose natural nesting cavities are being degraded. In the first season, 91 boxes were occupied, with the common myna being the most frequent occupant.

The Flood Green Guide, published by WWF International, advocates for an Integrated Flood Management (IFM) approach that prioritizes non-structural methods and combines 'soft' (nature-based) and 'hard' (engineered) structural interventions. It provides a five-stage project cycle—preliminary analysis, method identification, selection and design, operation and monitoring, and project evaluation—to help local managers reduce flood risk. The guide details various techniques, from upper watershed restoration and constructed wetlands to engineered drainage and land-use zoning, while emphasizing the importance of gender analysis, community engagement, and the specific challenges of urban flooding, such as the urban heat island effect and land subsidence.