SG-10

PROJECT INFORMATION

Integrating Health Response into the Energy-Environmental Assessment of Buildings to Reduce the Risk of Exposure to Urban Heat: A Case Study in Chile

Principal investigator (PI):

Massimo Palme, Universidad Técnica Federico Santa María (USM), Chile

E-mail:  massimo.palme@usm.cl 

Phone: + (56) 984255812

Duration & funding:

(July 2024–2025) USD 15,000

Co-funding offered:

USD 38,600

Participating countries: 

Brazil, Ecuador, USA, Colombia, Chile

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Exposure to suboptimal temperatures has a high morbidity rate in the Americas Region, which varies depending on the local context. The effects of climate change will increase the intensity and frequency of extreme heat, affecting the health and well-being of the most vulnerable populations, especially in urban areas. Building regulations for residential buildings focused on climate sustainability and energy efficiency are applied, but there is no data that reflects their benefit to the health of its inhabitants, weakening the potential benefits, since those who inhabit these interior spaces have a large part of the responsibility. This study proposes to evaluate the health perception of the occupants of existing residences that meet or do not meet sustainability/energy efficiency standards exposed to high urban temperatures in Valparaíso, Chile. With a qualitative approach, the initial theory will be built based on systematic reviews of the association between temperatures and events recorded in the health, and thermal behavior of the residence, in addition to field research on thermal and health perception of the inhabitants. The integration of the participants will allow us to expand the capacity for transdisciplinary research, debate, and scientific evidence of the perceived effects of heat exposure, as mechanisms for updating or formulating building regulations, climate sustainability, and energy efficiency.