GIZ Thailand and the Department of Public Works and Town and Country Planning (DPT) have partnered on the Urban-Act project to facilitate the ‘Urban-Act Climate Knowledge Exchanges Series for Resilient Urban Development’ throughout the project to maximise the practical application of climate change considerations in urban planning at all levels, focusing on policy frameworks, land use planning, and urban and building design. The programme also includes presentations on collaborative approaches with various agencies, along with practical examples from both Thai and international experts. The discussions were grounded in the specific context of Thailand’s urban planning, enabling planners to customise and implement these ideas efficiently.

The recent ‘Navigating Urban & Climate: Science, Strategies, and Implementation’ seminar, held on 14 June 2024 from 9:30 am to 12:00 pm at the DPT, Rama 9 office, attracted over 100 online and in-person participants. Anchalee Tanwanich, Urban Planning Advisor at the DPT, and Heinrich Gudenus delivered the welcoming remarks.

The seminar commenced with a keynote address entitled ‘Urban climate science fundamentals: an in-depth understanding of the fundamentals of climate science and how this plays out in urban areas’. Associate Professor, Dr Kathy Oke, Director Melbourne Centre for Cities, Faculty of Architecture Building and Planning, University of Melbourne, Australia, presented ‘The Summary for Urban Policymakers (SUP)’, a series from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report that distils complex climate change science into actionable information for city leaders. It was designed to help cities take informed climate action and make decisions on resilience.

The presentation was divided into three main parts: 1) the latest climate science findings relevant to cities and urban areas, 2) the impacts, adaptation, and risks faced by cities, and 3) strategies for mitigating climate change at the urban level. For more information, please visit https://supforclimate.com/.

The latest IPCC report highlights how future urban expansion, coupled with increasingly frequent extreme weather events such as heatwaves, will exacerbate urban heat stress. Moreover, urban growth alone, even without the influence of climate change, will intensify the urban heat island effect. This phenomenon can have a negative impact on human health. The temperature difference and increased heat are typically greater at night than during the day, as the heat becomes trapped and compressed – like a lid on a boiling pot. This effect can lead to discomfort, stress, and various health issues. While humans can adapt to gradual changes in climate over long periods, short-term fluctuations can increase mortality and morbidity rates.

Dr Oke also reflected that cities and urban areas can play a significant role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions through adaptation options such as low-carbon transportation, energy-efficient buildings, and improved natural carbon sequestration.

Ambitious urban policies that lead in designing and implementing effective greenhouse gas mitigation interventions can also yield co-benefits for climate adaptation and sustainable development goals.

Zhang Dongyu from the Department of Policy and Regulation Research, National Center for Climate Change Strategy and International Cooperation (NCSC) shared experiences from ‘Pilot Construction of Low-carbon Cities and Climate Adaptive Cities in China’.

Since 2013, China has implemented a comprehensive national strategy that places equal emphasis on mitigation and adaptation to climate change. The mitigation strategy focuses on long-term planning in energy, industry, and natural resources, while the adaptation strategy prioritises risk reduction through enhanced risk monitoring and the management of natural, social, and economic systems. In 2017, 28 pilot projects were launched. Subsequently, the strategy was elevated to a national agenda item until 2035, with the most recent update in 2023 featuring 39 new projects.

In addition, successful case studies are: 1) the transformation of an old industrial park in Jinan into a large, beautiful park, 2) the green and low-carbon transportation system in Xiamen, 3) the sponge city project in Changde, and 4) the ecological restoration of a coal-mining area in Huaibei. These projects demonstrate China’s commitment to building environmentally-friendly cities. (Please refer to the images below for detailed project information.)

Lastly, Dr Zhang Yongxiang, Deputy Director of the Climate Change Strategy Research Office, National Climate Center (NFCC), discussed ‘Urban Heat Island’ (UHI). She presented research on the monitoring and impact of urban microclimates (temperature, humidity) using the Local Climate Zone (LCZ) classification scheme. The study examined the temperature differences between built-up and non-built-up areas, as well as the impact of green roofs on building energy consumption.

Dr Zhang presented findings on the urban heat island effect, using observational data from urban and rural areas in 15 cities to study the impacts of temperature and humidity on human life. The study found that urban and rural areas experience significant differences in the frequency and duration of heatwaves and cold waves under similar weather conditions, which mainly appear as a pattern of ‘heatwave amplification and cold wave alleviation’, especially during summer. Urban areas with tall buildings and hard surfaces tend to have higher temperatures due to the urban heat island effect. Therefore, green spaces and bodies of water play a significant role in reducing temperatures and improving air quality in cities.

In sum, this ambitious knowledge exchange effort showed that cities can implement aggressive mitigation policies while contributing to sustainable development. Pursuing mitigation and adaptation actions together can promote climate-resilient development and enhance human and planetary health.