Strengthening Climate-Health Alliances: Equitable Partnerships for Heat Adaptation Interventions in Africa

Despite the growing need for heat adaptation solutions to limit adverse health impacts, implementation in LLMICs remains limited and research fragmented. Increased implementation requires knowledge of effective, relevant, mature, and feasible measures, and of possible local barriers and solutions to ensure successful implementation. Local ownership and policy translation are essential to ensure broader and sustainable implementation. The HEATADAPT pre-project aims to establish equitable partnerships with relevant organizations and institutions in a low or lower middle-income country (LLMIC) drawing upon the CHANCE-network (Climate Health Africa Network for Collaboration and Engagement). CICERO will partner with researchers, an implementing organisation, relevant NGOs and policymakers on climate and health to develop a proposal to test and implement heat adaptation solutions to mitigate negative health impacts from heat stress on vulnerable populations. The pre-project will be critical in building a solid foundation and identifying possibilities and key requirements for a high-impact user-oriented C&K-project. Pre-project will identify realistic, locally appropriate solutions and activities for the main project, focusing on technical and behavioural solutions that complement existing health response options to improve vulnerable populations’ heat adaptation. Potential interventions include cool roofs, water-harvesting and early warning systems. While there is increased research on the technical implementation of for instance cool roofs, less is known about possible barriers to broader implementation and how changes in behaviour may affect the net impact on health. By co-producing and aligning research with local needs, this pre-project seeks to ensure that implementation research is impactful and scalable. The pre-project will involve multiple disciplines, including health, development and natural resource economics, environmental chemistry and atmospheric sciences.