Why Urban Heat Resilience Needs to Be Equitable
10/31/19
“Why must equity take paramount importance when we design urban heat resilience?”
With the increase in average global temperatures and the densification of metropolitan centers, urban heat resilience will become a greater issue for the world. However, engineers and urban planners must keep in mind that the most vulnerable people in society, particularly seniors, young children, pregnant women, and people with disabilities and medical conditions will be the most susceptible to extreme heat. Resilience techniques that do not take these elements of society into account or ignore their needs will actively hurt them. For example, if all of the resources go to greening the wealthy districts of a city, then none will be left for people of lower-income areas. Since it is the duty of resilience professionals to ensure the safety of those most affected by climate change, it is only understandable Why Urban Heat Resilience Needs to Be Equitable.