CARBSE develops a standardised methodology to assess Urban Heat Island Effects (UHIE) for Indian cities

The Centre for Advanced Research in Building Science and Energy (CARBSE) at CRDF has developed a standardised methodology to map and assess the urban heat island effect (UHIE) for Indian cities. Based on two tenets, ‘Level of Details’ (LoD) and ‘Fit for the Purpose’ (FFP), the methodology is expected to provide technical guidance to Indian cities to assess UHIE and its impact on energy for cooling, GHG emissions and outdoor thermal comfort. The LoD refers to an approach that involves representing data at different levels of complexity depending on the specific requirements of the application. The FFP is an approach that helps define suitable objectives. The combination of the LoD and FFP will help cities to take informed decisions based on the level of economic, human and time resources available to them. The Cool Coalition of the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP) and the National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA) supported the work.