UHI Mitigation Toolkit
This repository of good practices in UHI adaptation and mitigation was created by governmental and non-governmental actors to promote implemented practices and foster their transfer and scaling up.
The good practices are grouped by type of intervention: green (vegetation-based), blue (water-based), white (material-based) and mixed measures. You can filter them by type or explore all.
At the initiative of the Department for Ecology and Communal Affairs, the City of Zenica carried out the development of a new horticultural feature in front of the City Library. Following a public procurement process, the company “ALBA ZENICA” d.o.o. Zenica was selected as the most favourable contractor. The project transformed this frequently visited location, surrounded by educational institutions and adjacent to the city park, into an attractive and multifunctional green space. A plant maze with evergreen shrub borders and gravel walkways was created, combining aesthetic appeal with recreational and playful value, especially for children.
As part of Zenica’s broader urban greening strategy, the City entered into an agreement to implement horticultural landscaping at the entrance to Business Zone I. The initiative, worth 23,382.45 KM, involved construction work to remove asphalt and underlying layers, followed by soil delivery, levelling, and landscaping.
The City of Zenica has undertaken a series of green infrastructure measures focused on urban forestation and landscape enhancement. One standout project involved the creation of a Japanese-style urban dry garden near the Radakovo roundabout along the Babina River.
The "Ljubljana's own weather" project is being implemented on Prešern Square, right in the most frequented area of the old city centre. A sprinkler system has been installed in the middle of the square to produce artificial rain. This interactive artwork by painter Zmago Modic was originally created in 2008, but has become a regular seasonal installation during the summer since 2015, mainly due to the increasing number of tourists and rising summer temperatures. The installation helps to reduce the heat, especially on hot summer days when the city is full of tourists.
The City of Ljubljana undertook the renovation of the star-shaped pedestrian paths in the Zvezda park, situated right in the heart of the city. Due to the high frequency of people daily, the city decided to use paving materials that are more suitable for the park's trees and vegetation, ensuring usability in all weather conditions while preserving the appearance of the sandy paths. The primary goal of the renovation was to enhance the conditions of the green areas, which are particularly prone to trampling during bad weather or rainfall. The solution also contributes to reducing overheating of paved surfaces at the pedestrian level on hot summer days.
The BTC city is a former degraded warehouse area which was transformed first into the largest shopping area BTC city and later into the largest shopping and entertainment area with more than 500 shops and a wide range of services and activities (sport, business, culture, etc.). The extensive urban planning project continuously improves its environmental conditions, as it is recognized as a large urban heat island in the City of Ljubljana. The mission of the BTC City is to bring nature back into its urban landscape, aiming to become a greener and more climate-resilient business district. To achieve this goal, the focus has been on green interventions such as parks, green roofs, green walls, and tree planting to support biodiversity, enhance the microclimate, and improve the comfort and well-being of visitors, employees, and business partners.
The Green Tram Tracks are tram lines where the space between and around the tracks is covered with grass. This concept combines public transport with green spaces. In Sofia, the first green rails project was implemented in 2015. It was a pilot project implemented together with the replacement of pavements in the area.
The Vienna UHI-STRAT (Urban Heat Islands Strategic Plan), published in 2015, is a strategic document aimed at initiating initiatives at various city levels to counteract the Urban Heat Island (UHI) effect but also at providing a comprehensive framework for these various sub-initiatives and -projects. UHI STRAT Vienna was developed under the leadership of the Vienna Environmental Protection Department (MA 22) in collaboration with scientific experts and numerous specialized departments of the City of Vienna. Its development was part of the Central European Urban Heat Islands Project, a collaboration project between the European cities of Bologna, Budapest, Freiburg, Karlsruhe, Ljubljana, Modena, Padua, Prague, Stuttgart, Warsaw and Venice, as well as Vienna.
The "UHI Strategic Plan Vienna" describes options for cooling urban heat islands and also contains information about the expected effectiveness of individual measures on the urban climate and at the neighbourhood level. Additionally, the strategic plan provides information on the benefits and potential challenges of implementing these measures, as well as the expected costs for their establishment and maintenance.
Innsbruck is a city nestled in the Alps. Due to its geographical location, it is a densely built-up city that, apart from the rivers Inn and Sill, has had little blue and green infrastructure to counteract the effects of climate change.
For urban heat island mitigation, the City of Innsbruck launched the "cool-INN" project in the summer of 2020 together with Innsbruck’s municipal IKB, the University of Innsbruck, and the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna (BOKU). The aim was to improve the quality of stay in an existing park, the exhibition park on Ing.-Etzel-Straße. Prior to the project, the triangular park included a kiosk building, nine large trees, and a central asphalt area with benches surrounded by green space, and was only little used. With a new design and expansion of the park area, a central water landscape was established to cool the area, making it more comfortable for visitors, especially during hot days. The new design of the park not only promotes social interaction, but pedestrian and cyclist use while reducing car traffic.
The “Klima Oasen” (English: “Climate Oases”) is an initiative aimed at providing cool retreats for vulnerable groups during hot summer days.
Launched by Caritas Austria, a catholic social aid organisation, it addresses the challenges posed by climate change, particularly the increasing frequency and intensity of heatwaves. The project is a collaboration between Caritas and various parishes in Vienna and Lower Austria.
Transformation of an unused space of an office building and old apartment building with adjacent gardens at the foot of the Špilberk Hill grounds into a community open space. (The origin of the place dates back to the 19th century, the space served as a so-called burgher garden with fruit orchards .)
The goal of the entire facility is to operate in a carbon neutral way, using renewable energy sources, reducing the consumption of energy, water and other resources, educating about this way of operating and about sustainability
In 2022, Moravian Square in Brno was revitalized. In 2023, the square was declared the Park of the Year 2023. Moravské náměstí is located in the heart of Brno, it is a place for relaxation and meeting. A key element of the revitalisation is the water surface, which is used to cool down in the summer months and then drained in the winter, creating a space for various events.
Link to the practice
DADA Distrikt represents the revitalization of a former textile factory from the 1920s into a multifunctional complex that includes loft living, studios, open space offices, and a green roof garden. The project focused on sustainable technology, preserving industrial character and community living.
Link to the practice
The building of "Muzeiko" is designed with high standards for energy efficiency and environmental protection, in compliance with international "green building" standards. The project holds a USGBC-LEED-Gold certification. The main goal is to reduce energy costs and optimize the microclimate through a combination of passive cooling measures, green elements, and intelligent façade systems.
Link to the practice
The Public Utility Company "Zelenilo Beograd" has landscaped a 242m² square located between very busy streets. In addition to serving as a pedestrian connection between streets and a short break for passers-by, this green corner improves the microclimatic conditions at this location.
Green wall on the ''Djoka Vještica'' platou is the first green wall installed in Belgrade in 2014 as a pilot project, which became over the time a recognizable part of the urban space in front of one of the symbols of Belgrade. However, the passage of time has taken its toll, so the green wall needed to be repaired during the reconstruction of the plateau.
The residential-commercial building (GF+6) is located in a residential block and city area which is highly densely populated. The building was designed in an uninterrupted sequence with a front facade facing Vojvode Tankosića Street.
The first urban photo-bioreactor in Serbia, LIQUID 3 was installed in front of the Stari Grad Municipality in Makedonska Street in Belgrade. This "liquid tree", as it is called at the Institute for Multidisciplinary Research of the University of Belgrade where it was designed, represents a new biotechnological solution for air purification and reduction of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in urban areas, where concentrations are the highest.
Arad is the first city in the country where a significant green space was created thanks to the greening of tram lines, the installation being carried out in the summer and autumn of 2023. The successful project is considered pioneering in Romania and it is expected that other cities will join the initiative soon. The landscaping was carried out without irrigation systems over a length of 5.5 km.. The greening of the tram lines was achieved by arranging Sedum rolls between the tram tracks and outside them, along the entire length of the site.
The city of Győr is crossed by several rivers and canals, which flow into the nearby Danube. Due to the changing climate and conditions, average water levels have been below normal. To address this, the General Directorate of Water Management, the city of Győr and the Hungarian State have cooperated to build a water level control dam at the mouth of the Mosoni-Danube and Danube rivers near Győr. The aim was to raise the water level of the surrounding rivers by damming them, which would allow the water flowing through the city to be abundant in summer.
Sofia Municipality designed a shared “cooled” space in Vazrazhdane Park, named “Amphitheater” and located in a densely built-up urban environment, by applying shading nature-based solutions, allowing the maintenance of climbing and other heat and drought resistant plants, installation of sprinkler systems (foggers), construction of rock corners (alpineums) with appropriate vegetation, replacement of the existing pavement with a light-colored pavement made of natural materials with low thermal capacity and installation of a portable screen and multimedia.
The REPLACE – Replace Concrete with Greenery project is an innovative initiative in Ostrava – Jih that transforms mundane concrete surfaces into sustainable, attractive green spaces. The project not only aims to enhance the urban microclimate and mitigate the urban heat island effect but also improves the overall quality of city life. Funding is secured through a combination of municipal budgets, public-private partnerships, and potential EU funds.
In 2023, Liberec transformed a large asphalt parking lot in the city centre into a green space with newly planted trees along Janských and Moskevská streets. This initiative aimed to reduce the urban heat island effect, improve air quality, and enhance the city centre's aesthetic appeal.