is a former philosophy professor and independent journalist who writes for Welcome to the Jungle.
Picture © CP
IN BRIEF
A “Chief Heat Officer” (CHO) is a person whose job is to adapt a city to the consequences of global warming.
WHERE DID IT COME FROM ?
This term was created by a branch of the American think tank Atlantic Council, called the Adrienne Arsht-Rockefeller Foundation Resilience Center (Arsht-Rock), which acts at the level of government policies and municipalities.
Did you feel the heat this summer? That could be just the beginning. Arsht-Rock predicts that 20% of the world’s most populous cities could gain 4°C by 2050, and around 25% more than 7°C by 2100. In this context, the role of the Chief Heat Officer would be to inform residents, identify vulnerable population groups, and even rethink urban architecture to meet the challenge.
EXAMPLE?
In the summer of 2022, the UN set up a “Global CHO” responsible for supervising the efforts of cities around the world to make heatwaves more bearable. In this position, the former CHO of the City of Athens, Eleni Myrivili, has been coordinating various initiatives related to extreme heat and supporting local planning policies accordingly: by developing a watercourse, f…
Subscribe to Philonomist and gain free access to all our content and archives for 7 days. You'll also receive our weekly newsletter. No commitment. No bank details required.
You're already subscribed to Philonomist via your employer?
Connect to your account by filling in the following details (please provide your professional email address).
