Are cities taking action against urban overheating? Insights from over 7,500 local climate actions

Mitigating urban overheating is vital to create livable urban futures. Research on urban heat mitigation is plentiful, while knowledge about the actual measures local governments are implementing is limited. This study examines 7,500+ heat mitigation actions by 2,500+ cities under two flagship programs of the European Commission. The analysis reveals that cities’ strategies pivot around green- and water-based technologies (66% of the actions) while mildly leveraging permeable and reflective surfaces (35%) and rarely solar shading and wind control (8%) or stimuli-responsive/smart systems (2%). Hundreds of cities that (1) indicate extreme heat as a hazard of growing intensity and/or frequency, (2) are located in hot-summer climatic zones, (3) will experience increasingly frequent heatwaves, and/or (4) host a numerous population are not reporting any urban heat precaution. Moreover, cities show limited familiarity with combinatorial approaches and little attention to specific vulnerable population groups. Prevention, awareness, and social justice should receive more attention.