Can Relieving the Urban Fever Help Our Climate?

The embracing of rapid urbanisation for better lifestyles has led to mindless concretisation, proving to be one of the biggest threats to the outdoor temperature in cities.
Commonly known as the Urban Heat Island (UHI) effect, this localised phenomenon causes a rise in the land surface temperature (LST) as materials absorb and retain heat. This leads to a series of direct and indirect impacts on citizens, biodiversity, and emissions.

Currently, both UHI and heat-induced ecological changes remain unmonitored and unaddressed. While there are implementable solutions at various levels—policy or community—a stronger impetus on identifying and actively working on urban heat will be climactic.