Anthropogenic land-use changes, driven by rapid urban expansion and rising population pressures, have significantly exacerbated climate change, intensifying the urban heat island effect (UHI) and raising levels of airborne pollutants. Global forests, indispensable carbon sinks that sequester up to approximately 7.6 gigatons of CO₂ annually, play a vital role in moderating local microclimates through evapotranspiration, wind, and albedo modulation, enhancing thermal comfort, improving air quality, and supporting ecological and human well-being. However, their extensive decline throughout the Anthropocene has substantially heightened urban vulnerability to a spectrum of environmental and climatic stressors. This study employs a comparative framework utilizing Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and advanced computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modeling to assess the efficacy of reforestation and forest structural designs in reducing land surface temperature (LST), increasing evapotranspiration, and generating localized 'urban cool islands'. Supporting integrative climate adaptation strategies that alleviate climate-driven heat stress while fostering urban resilience and ecological integrity.
Presentations:
From point to network: designing Turin's future through its rivers
Jowita Aleksandra Tabak and Riccardo Ronzani
Cities, Infrastructure and Adaptation to Climate Change (CIAM Climate)
Renato Luiz Sobral Anelli and Ana Paula Koury
Revaluation of the industrial landscape for the urban regeneration of the city of Tumán, 2023
Aurora Isabel Marchena Tafur
Are biogardens a strategy to reduce heat stress in desert climates possible?: Case of Portada de Manchay II, Peru
Loyde Vieira de Abreu Harbich, Jose Pajuelo, Perola Felipette Brocaneli and Andre Luiz Nery Figueiredo
Urban microclimates: thermal constructions of socio-environmental imprints
Mariami Maghlakelidze