Global Heat Resilience Service

The Global Heat Resilience Service (GHRS) is GEO’s contribution to the UN Secretary-General’s Call to Action on Extreme Heat (June 2024), addressing the growing threat of extreme heat, exacerbated by climate change and urbanization. Vulnerable groups, such as the elderly, outdoor workers, and low-income populations, are disproportionately affected. By 2050, over 1.3 billion urban dwellers will face dangerous heat exposure, leading to significant health risks and economic losses. Urban areas, particularly in low- and middle-income countries, lack reliable, localized data, information, and insight to make the case for heat and guide effective heat resilience strategies.

The Global Heat Resilience Service (GHRS) aims to close critical knowledge and action gaps by providing cities with a comprehensive approach to heat resilience. Through standardized methodologies and integrated data services, GHRS helps identify urban “hot spots” and vulnerable populations, accounting for factors such as healthcare access, infrastructure quality, and socioeconomic status. These insights are translated into actionable intelligence through user-friendly digital tools that help cities make the case for action and guide investment decisions. GHRS then supports implementation through policy frameworks and community engagement, ensuring solutions are locally appropriate—particularly vital for low- and middle-income cities.

GHRS aims to reduce the annual toll of 500,000 excess deaths from extreme heat, with a particular focus on vulnerable urban populations. By 2050, the service could benefit up to 7 billion urban residents, including 1.3 billion people projected to be directly exposed to extreme heat. Economic impacts include averting $2.4 trillion in annual losses from reduced labor productivity and preventing a projected $7.1 trillion burden on healthcare systems. The service will enhance urban livability through improved infrastructure and planning while supporting environmental benefits through heat-mitigating, nature-based solutions. These interventions will particularly benefit vulnerable urban communities in the Global South.

By 2030, GHRS will be an operational service providing every urban area in the world with actionable intelligence on the health and economic risks of extreme heat exposure. GHRS will help cities everywhere to:

The GHRS objectives span three complementary areas: developing accessible EO-powered heat risk data and standardized heat risk assessment methodologies; prototyping digital decision-support tool(s); supporting urban implementation by integrating heat resilience into city planning and developing targeted action plans; and building community capacity through awareness campaigns, training programs, and knowledge-sharing networks between cities. These objectives will be delivered through a phased approach, scaling from pilot cities to global coverage, ensuring cities have the tools, knowledge, and support needed to implement effective heat resilience measures.

GHRS aims to scale from a targeted pilot to a comprehensive global service through three strategic phases over 2025–2030:

Success metrics will include reduced heat-related mortality, increased adoption of heat-resilient infrastructure, and improved capacity of cities to manage extreme heat events through evidence-based decision-making.

GHRS operates through a core project team at the GEO Secretariat, including a project manager, technical lead, and communications coordinator. Technical oversight is provided by a Science and Technical Committee with input from a range of organizations, including WMO, UN-Habitat, and UNDRR, while strategic guidance comes from an Advisory Board comprising representatives from the GEO Work Programme and key partners (C40 Cities, UN-Habitat, Resilient Cities Network). This structure is supported by a broader network of city partners, National Meteorological Services, and community organizations that ensure effective local implementation. Regular coordination between these bodies occurs through technical working groups and stakeholder workshops.

To ensure inclusive and transparent engagement with the broader GEO community, GHRS will implement a structured approach by working directly with and through GEO’s Working Groups, Regional GEOs, Communities of Practice, and wider networks. This will include active participation in relevant GEO forums, collaborative workshops with key Working Groups, and regular knowledge exchange sessions with Regional Action Groups. Additionally, we will establish a public project dashboard to track milestones and share key learnings from pilot implementations. This engagement strategy will ensure that the GEO community not only remains informed of GHRS developments but also actively contributes to shaping the service’s evolution and implementation approaches.

GHRS will also establish formal coordination mechanisms with other elements of the GEO Work Programme, including, but not limited to, the Resilient Cities and Human Settlements Working Group (RCHS-WG), the Disaster Risk Reduction and Adaptation Working Group (DRRA-WG), and GEONICE, to leverage their expertise and avoid duplication of efforts. This will include cross-membership in technical working groups, regular coordination meetings, and shared knowledge repositories. The project team will conduct a comprehensive mapping of relevant capacities within both initiatives to identify specific opportunities for collaboration, particularly in areas of urban heat resilience modeling and community engagement methodologies. This strategic alignment will enhance GHRS outcomes while strengthening connections across the GEO Work Programme.