In our haste to accommodate 3 million more people per week in cities around the world, we seem to have forgotten much of what these ancient civilizations taught us about cooling.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
These dominant construction materials and cooling technologies are helping to keep some people cool. However, they aren\u2019t accessible to all and come at a high environmental price \u2013 the stability of our climate. Experts predict that the humble air conditioner could use up 20-40% of the world\u2019s remaining carbon budget. So whilst modern modes of cooling provide instant thermal comfort, ironically these very same modes are warming the planet up. Darwin would not be proud.<\/p>\n
Fortunately, not everyone has forgotten how to work with, rather than against, nature as we strive to keep people cool. The city of Medell\u00edn in Colombia was recently recognized with a prestigious Ashden Award (supported by the Kigali Cooling Efficiency Program<\/a>), for efforts to create ‘green corridors’ in the midst of its buildings, transport routes, and plazas. The results provide a beacon of hope \u2013 in addition to keeping the temperature a more pleasant 2-3\u00b0C lower than normal, the corridors have engaged communities, beautified the otherwise dull concrete sprawl, reduced air pollution, and enhanced biodiversity.<\/p>\n In Singapore, the government embarked on an ambitious \u2018garden city\u2019 plan in 1967 with intensive tree-planting and the creation of new parks. As the population grew and buildings got taller, the focus shifted to include skyrise greenery encompassing \u2018skygardens,\u2019 vertical planting, and green roofs. More recently, the government introduced the LUSH policy<\/a> \u2013 Landscaping for Urban Spaces and High-Rises. LUSH requires new buildings to offset any loss of nature with new areas of greenery, including on walls and roofs. Parts of the city literally look like the hanging gardens of Babylon and bring with them 2-3\u00b0C temperature reductions and the multiple benefits of cooling by nature.<\/p>\n Italy’s \u2018Bosco Verticale\u2019 towers are adorned with some 780 planted trees and other plants, altogether integrating about 1,000 different species into the property.<\/p><\/div>\n Italy\u2019s \u2018Bosco Verticale\u2019 (Vertical Forest) is a pair of residential towers in the Porta Nuova district of Milan. The buildings (365 feet and 260 feet tall) are adorned with some 780 planted trees and countless numbers of plants, altogether integrating about 1,000 different species into the property. Each apartment has its own private garden, which not only looks great, but also filters sunlight to keep temperatures down and cuts down on noise and air pollution. The gardens are watered through a self-replenishing irrigation process and photovoltaic panels on the roof that convert sunlight to electricity.<\/p>\n Despite these success stories, very few governments around the world, at the national or city level, have seized the opportunity for cooling by nature. Significantly more can be achieved to regulate urban heat islands and rising global temperatures by making space for nature in cities. The September Climate Summit in New York<\/a> presents a key near-term opportunity for countries to commit to more natural cooling in their national cooling plans. This does not, however, mean jettisoning modern cooling, although air conditioning systems need a paradigm shift in energy efficiency and to move away from super-polluting fluorinated gases that can stay in the atmosphere and contribute to climate change for centuries to come. The future of cooling should blend old and new \u2013 mixed modes that first aim to minimize heat (for example by making space for nature), and then address residual heat with locally and culturally appropriate, climate-friendly technologies, such as super-efficient air conditioners using natural refrigerants, or by using renewably powered fans.<\/p>\n Aldous Huxley once said, “That men do not learn very much from the lessons of history is the most important of all the lessons of history.” The stability of our climate demands better. We need a renaissance in how we cool our cities by taking lessons from the past and making space for nature. And as with renaissance art, citizens just might marvel at the beauty that can be created in the midst of our urban sprawl.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":13881,"parent":0,"template":"","portfolio":[45],"yoast_head":"\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\n\n\n\t\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.climateworks.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Bosco_Verticale_159667427-300x199.jpeg\")
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