Heat Resilience: A Matter of Both Adaptation and Mitigation for the GCC

Jamila Mir
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Jamila Mir: Baladiya Catalyst

A chapter in Climate-Resilient Cities, 2025, pp 47-61 from Springer

Abstract: Abstract The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and the wider Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region are also warming twice as fast as the global average, with temperatures already reaching a 2 °C scenario compared to preindustrial temperatures. According to the United Nations Environment Program, cooling generates around 7% of the global greenhouse gas emissions, while it is responsible for 70% of the peak electricity demand in the GCC. This highlights the prominence of heat as a key climate impact for the GCC region and it really is a matter of both climate mitigation as well as adaptation. Heat resilience and cooling therefore become priority action areas for the governments of the region to deliver on the Paris Goals in a locally responsive manner. This article aims to provide an overview of the impacts of increasing heat on the GCC region, current efforts to address them, and opportunities for enhanced climate action for a heat-resilient future. It highlights existing practices in mitigating the impacts of increased heat through urban planning, public realm design, and building design as well as workforce guidelines for outdoor jobs. It also identifies key areas requiring additional research within the region and key policy recommendations for countries in the GCC to better address the various impacts of increasing temperatures.

Keywords: Heat resilience; Cooling demand; Energy demand; Water demand; Building; Health impacts; Urban planning (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:spr:conchp:978-3-031-73090-0_3

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DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-73090-0_3

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