By Nupur Khanter, Research Associate, Transitions Research, India

Extreme heat has become a regular feature of life in cities. Natural systems that once provided shade, moisture, and airflow have been replaced by concrete and asphalt. These materials trap heat and drive the urban heat island effect, especially in dense, poorly ventilated areas. Shrinking green spaces and water bodies further weaken a city’s ability to stay cool. Without vegetation and porous surfaces, cities lose vital cooling processes like evapotranspiration and shading — both essential in tropical regions. In this context, nature-based cooling is emerging as a key strategy for heat adaptation, using ecological systems to reduce heat and improve liveability.

Designing Nature-Based Cooling Solutions

Nature-based solutions (NbS) restore and integrate natural ecosystems into cities to address climate risks. Features such as tree-lined streets, restored wetlands, urban forests, canals with native vegetation, shaded schoolyards, and green roofs help lower local temperatures and improve comfort.

Nature-based cooling goes beyond simply planting trees. It reconnects people and cities to the ecological systems that sustain safety and resilience.  Success depends on understanding local landscapes, selecting native species, and planning green cover carefully. Involving communities in design and care strengthens outcomes and keeps these spaces thriving. NbS work at a systems level: they reduce extreme heat, support water resilience, create public spaces and contribute to a city’s economic vitality.

Making Nature-Based Cooling Equitable

Nature-based cooling is closely tied to health and social equity. Urban green areas tend to be cooler than urban non-green areas^[1].  Nature-based interventions can reduce exposure to pollution and heat while supporting mental health and well-being through physical activity and access to nature^[2].

This is not just a climate issue, but a social one. Nature-based cooling must benefit everyone, but access is still unequal. Global South cities have only ~70% of the cooling capacity of cities in the Global North, because of differences in the amount and quality of green space^[3]. Inequalities exist within cities too, as low-income and marginalised neighbourhoods often have less tree cover and fewer public green areas. To address this, nature-based solutions must prioritise these communities and guard against displacement and gentrification. Equity safeguards help ensure green spaces serve those who need them most.

Insights from Kolhapur and Panaji

Through Transitions Research’s work in Kolhapur and Panaji, we explored how nature-based cooling can strengthen heat adaptation. In Kolhapur, we examined the decline of gardens and nalas. Interventions included blue-green filtering landscapes, native plantings, and structured festival spaces to address pollution, flooding, and heat while fostering community ties and culture. In Panaji, the loss of tree cover and natural cooling due to expanding infrastructure was a key issue. Strategies such as greening school campuses, creating biodiversity trails, and planting native species along pavements and medians can help address this issue.

Nature-based cooling is a practical, people-centred strategy for adapting to heat. It requires good design, local knowledge, and strong institutions. Our work in Kolhapur and Panaji shows how cities can restore natural assets as everyday climate infrastructure. With rising temperatures, this is no longer optional — it is essential to build safe, inclusive, and future-ready cities.

^[1] Knight, T., Price, S., Bowler, D. et al. How effective is ‘greening’ of urban areas in reducing human exposure to ground-level ozone concentrations, UV exposure and the ‘urban heat island effect’? An updated systematic review. Environ Evid 10, 12 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13750-021-00226-y

^[2] Nature-based solutions and health. Copenhagen: WHO Regional Office for Europe; 2025. Licence: CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO.

^[3] Li, Y., Svenning, JC., Zhou, W. et al. Green spaces provide substantial but unequal urban cooling globally. Nat Commun 15, 7108 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-51355-0

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this piece are those of the author/s and do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of AIDMI.